


Prisms of No Color

by Rose_of_Pollux



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: Canon-typical peril, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-06
Updated: 2016-02-06
Packaged: 2018-05-18 15:51:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 28,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5934016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rose_of_Pollux/pseuds/Rose_of_Pollux
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something is very wrong with the Time Vortex, and as the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe make an emergency landing in an extraterrestrial human colony, their problems only go from bad to worse. Further complicating matters is an old foe, bent on revenge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A World that Glitters Glibly

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: The characters aren't mine, and the story is! This is a pre-War Games piece featuring Two, Jamie, and Zoe… along with a previous one-time villain who will be showing up in the next chapter.

"Doctor! Doctor, can ye tell Zoe to stop going on about me wearing something other than a kilt?"

"I was just saying that there are several occasions where wearing a kilt just isn't practical—you'd be much better off wearing trousers!"

"If I handled running through the moors of the Highlands in a kilt, I think I'll be just fine!"

"You are so stubborn Jamie," Zoe muttered. "You may find it easier with trousers, you know. And what if we're being chased by aliens over rugged terrain? A kilt may impede your running speed."

"My running speed is fine," Jamie insisted. "The Doctor and I have been running from aliens long before we met ye, over all kinds of terrain, and I never once dragged us down. Right, Doctor?"

The Doctor, who had been silently watching the argument between the young Scot and the even younger girl, now ducked behind the console of the TARDIS, as though he could avoid the situation altogether by hiding.

"Doctor…!" two voices chorused, amused.

"I do wish you two would leave me out of your arguments," the Gallifreyan said, briefly peering out from behind the console. "No one has to be right all the time, you know. You both have very good points, but what seems to be the best option for one would, in fact, be ill-suited for another."

"There ye are, then," Jamie said, satisfied. "Ye leave me be!"

Zoe merely shrugged her shoulders and was about to say something else, but her words were preempted by a loud, booming crack issuing from outside. She yelped in surprise as Jamie pulled out his knife, aiming it at the doors.

"We're under attack!" he exclaimed.

"No, no, no," the Doctor assured him, now getting to his feet again. "Put that away, Jamie; it's quite alright. It's not uncommon for lightning storms to occur in the Time Vortex; there's a great deal of energy in this void, you know—naturally, the excess sometimes manifests itself in ways such as this."

"As electrical energy?" Zoe asked, intrigued.

"Oh, yes!" the Doctor said, eager to explain. "It's quite a simple phenomenon, really; all it takes is just—"

He was interrupted now, this time by the TARDIS suddenly lurching, and then emitting a screeching whirr.

"Steady on, Old Girl; surely it can't be as bad as all that…!" the Doctor said, placing a hand on the console.

The TARDIS whirred again, and Jamie suddenly let out a yelp.

"Doctor! The doors!"

"What's the matter with the—Oh, my word!"

Water was seeping in through the minute spaces under and between the doors; already, it was beginning to spread across the floor of the console room.

"I take it _that_ isn't supposed to happen?!" Zoe exclaimed, seeing the look on the Doctor's face.

"I'm afraid not," he replied, wringing his hands, nervously. "Oh dear, oh dear…"

The TARDIS lurched again, throwing Jamie and Zoe off of their feet; the Doctor had an arm around each of them in an instant to break their falls as the central column on the console began to rise and fall. Soon, the more familiar _vwoorp-vwoorp-vwoorp_ sound filled the room, signifying that they were coming in for a landing—and a rather violent one, by the feel of it.

"What have you done!?" Zoe cried, as the three of them were thrown across the console room again and into the far wall.

"It's out of my hands!" the Doctor exclaimed. "The TARDIS hates getting wet; she's getting us out of the Vortex—an emergency landing!"

The TARDIS shook once more, and then calmed down. The water had stopped seeping in through the doors, as well.

"Well, then," the Gallifreyan said, after looking around the console room in some trepidation. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

Zoe glanced at the Doctor in disbelief as Jamie responded with a dark look, rubbing his elbow on the spot where he had collided with the wall.

"Yes, well… at least it's over now," the Doctor said. "Right—let's see where we are, shall we?"

He crossed to the doors, but frowned as they refused to open.

"Has the water damaged the doors?" Zoe asked, worriedly.

"No, it couldn't have!" he exclaimed. "It would take much more than that to damage these doors—they've withstood the onslaught of armies! I can't understand…" He trailed off as the TARDIS whirred again, and he glanced at all the water on the floor. "Oh, I see…"

Jamie and Zoe stared in utter befuddlement as the Doctor now headed down the corridor. He returned to the console room within minutes, carrying mops and buckets.

"It shouldn't take too long if we all pitch in," the Doctor said, cheerfully.

"Ye must be joking," Jamie said.

"Jamie, I told you, the TARDIS doesn't like getting wet. Those doors aren't going to open until all this water is mopped up."

He handed them each a mop and a bucket before proceeding to begin the cleaning, whistling an old Gallifreyan tune as he worked.

"Sometimes I wonder who's really in charge here," Zoe sighed, as she began to mop up, as well.

Jamie let out a hollow laugh.

"I don't."

* * *

Finally, after the water had been cleaned up to the TARDIS's satisfaction, the doors were opened, admitting the Doctor and his companions to the world they had landed upon. The place was rocky and Earth-like, the sky covered by thick, dark thunderheads. Rumbles of thunder echoed all around them.

Jamie would have assumed they had landed on Earth had it not been for a formation of large, clear, triangular crystals towering over the landscape about a mile from where they had landed. Every few moments, a bolt of lightning would illuminate the crystals, which were the tallest structures around.

"Look!" he exclaimed, pointing to them.

"They look like giant prisms!" Zoe exclaimed.

"Yes…" the Doctor said, fishing out his 500-year-diary from his seemingly bottomless pockets and beginning to page through it. "Unless I'm mistaken, there's only one place in the galaxy with a large crystal structure like that… Aha, just as I thought! We've landed on Neo Serenity!" He indicated the bottom of the slopes, where the lights of a city were clearly visible. "It's inhabited, as well; we must be in the 23rd century—that was when the human colony began to flourish. They'd just completed their canal system, you see—to combat the effect of the rain shadow."

"Eh?" Jamie asked. "The rain casts a shadow?"

"No," the Doctor said, with a patient smile. "Rain shadow is when moisture in the air—moisture that would fall as rain or other forms of precipitation—falls on the mountains instead of beyond them. Because very little moisture makes it past the mountains, it leads to the formation of deserts."

"They built the city in a desert?" Zoe asked. "Why would they do that?"

"They had no other choice," the Doctor said. "The mountains here were unsuitable for building a city upon, and immediately past them is the coast. This was the only place they could build. They blasted away at the mountains, breaking them down and drilling into the sides as they built their canal system."

"So when it rains on the mountains, the canals take the water to the city," Zoe finished. "Why, that's brilliant!"

"It worked quite well!" the Doctor agreed. "There are such heavy rains in the mountains during the spring and summer months, the city is able to conserve the water they need in man-made reservoirs outside the city for the rest of the year. Judging by these stormclouds, we must be right in the thick of the rainy season."

Jamie was beginning to understand, but he still found the whole thing rather overwhelming.

"So, what's the point of those things, then?" he asked, indicating the towering, triangular crystals.

"When they were blasting down the mountaintops, these were found—originally in a cavern," the Doctor said, consulting the diary. "The people constructed their first hydroelectric plant at the base of these crystals. There's another one outside the city that keeps an eye on the reservoirs, though there are multiple turbines between here and there; in that way, the water produces the extra electrical power they need to maintain their cooling systems during the summer."

"Oh, aye…"

"Well, if they're going to have water flowing to the city in canals, they might as well harness whatever electricity they can from it," Zoe said to Jamie. "It's really a very brilliant strategy—one that's completely friendly for the environment."

Her sentence was punctuated by a crack of thunder.

"If they're that brilliant, why can't they harness that power?" Jamie asked, gesturing to the sky.

"I have no doubt that they'll find a way to accomplish that, as well," the Doctor said, glancing up at the storm.

Another flash of lightning lit up the cloudy sky, and Zoe began to feel a little nervous about standing outside.

"Doctor, are you sure we're safe out here?" she asked. "I think we should go back inside the TARDIS."

"Aye, we may as well leave," Jamie said. The novelty of the crystals had worn off, and he wasn't in the mood to discuss about rain shadow or hydroelectric power.

The Doctor sighed, realizing that he was outvoted.

"Very well, then; let's see if I can get the TARDIS to cooperate."

He frowned as Jamie failed in suppressing an all-too-audible snark.

"I'll have you know, Jamie, that a situation like this happens very rarely!"

"Really?" Zoe asked, a slight chuckle to her voice.

The Doctor knew they were both just teasing him now, but, still, pride dictated that he should respond.

"Yes, really! I am perfectly capable of piloting the TARDIS flawlessly, thank you very much!"

"Och, ye could've fooled me; ye never intended for us to land here."

"Yes, well… nobody's perfect… I could hardly have anticipated such a large amount of water in the Time Vortex…" The Doctor trailed off as a realization suddenly struck him. He stopped in his tracks and glanced down at the ground, taking note of the fact that he and the others were leaving footprints in the dusty ground. "Hold on just a moment. This ground is dry—too dry for the middle of the rainy season. Meanwhile, we ended up here because of water in the Vortex."

"Are you saying there's some sort of a connection?" Zoe asked.

A bolt of lightning now struck one of the tall crystals. For an instant, the crystal glowed from the electricity, and its clear interior was completely alight. Within the clear crystal was a most unearthly sight—a colorless, dark mass that still seemed to glow. Jamie and Zoe stared at it, puzzled, and the both of them turned to glance at the Doctor as a horrified gasp escaped his lips.

"What is it?" Jamie asked.

"Did you see that?!" the Gallifreyan asked, his eyes wide in shock. "Did you see that glow inside?"

"I see it, but I don't believe it!" Zoe said. "It's almost like a black light—dark, but glowing…"

"That is energy—pure time energy from the Vortex!" the Doctor exclaimed.

Another bolt of lightning lit up the sky, and, this time, the Doctor indicated a swirling object in the sky.

"Look at that—but don't look directly into it!"

"Is that the Vortex?" Jamie asked, his eyes widening.

"An opening to it, yes—I believe this is what caused the water to flood the Vortex—the water that should be raining here is, instead, being absorbed into the Vortex—and displacing time energy into these crystals as a result! The Vortex is being drained of time energy because of all of this!"

"Aye, that's too bad," Jamie said, folding his arms. "I guess it means ye'll ne'er pilot the TARDIS flawlessly again…"

"This is no time for jokes, Jamie!" the Doctor chided the Scot. "It's far more serious than that! Every second the rain doesn't fall here means that more water is entering the Vortex—and more time energy is being displaced into the crystals!"

Jamie and Zoe looked to him in confusion, and it became clear that they could not grasp the full scope of the situation.

"The TARDIS depends on the energy of the Vortex to travel through it," the Doctor explained. "And she detests water with a vengeance! Unless we find a way to stop this displacement of water and time energy, we're going to be stranded here!"


	2. The Unsuspecting City

The city of Neo Serenity was a bustling metropolis, though the recent drought, which had been ongoing for nearly three months into the rainy season, had already begun to take its toll. The greenhouses were struggling to grow produce, leading to a food shortage. Severe rationing restrictions—for both the existing food and water supplies—had been imposed by their new leader.

The leader had shown up a couple months before the drought had started—the odd formation in the sky had opened up over the crystals on the mountain, and this man had fallen from it. A group of hikers had found him and had brought him back to the city, where it had turned out that he was from another time and place.

But, more than that, when the drought started and concern began to grow over how the people were to survive, it was this man who found the solution—he commissioned the construction of a machine that could, in theory, manipulate the weather. The machine had been built at the base of the crystals on the mountain. It was at this point, when the preliminary tests succeeded in creating small rain showers, that the people wasted no time in having him lead them.

And now, three months into the drought, Ramon Salamander was the most powerful man in Neo Serenity.

Despite being the most powerful man on a planet once again, Salamander was irked. He had wielded far more power on Earth… until that strange man in that equally strange box had arrived—the man who shared the same face as him. The Doctor, he was called. Salamander had cursed that man a thousand times over; because of him, he had lost everything and had been sent into the Time Vortex. Salamander had no idea how long he had been trapped in that void; the only thing he knew was that he was now free, and in charge once again of a populace who blindly followed whatever he said.

He was maintaining his hold on Neo Serenity carefully—allowing tiny amounts of rain to fall when people pleaded and screamed for relief from the drought. He knew the machine had the full capability to ease the drought altogether, but he had quickly discovered that having the populace at his mercy was far more appealing. And there was also the fact that he was reluctant to go anywhere near the opening of the Vortex—for fear that he would be pulled back inside the void. As a result, the machine only drew small amounts of water from the atmosphere, while displacing the rest into the open Vortex.

Salamander glanced out of the window of his office. The crystals and the opening above them were visible. It was his hope that the displacement of the water would render the Vortex incapable of ever absorbing him back again. If there was some way to ensure that, then he could, possibly, make expansions to the weather machine and increase its capabilities to further show off to the populace of Neo Serenity and ensure that his power would not fade.

The intercom on his desk buzzed.

"Excuse me, Mr. Salamander?" his secretary's voice asked. "There's someone here to see you—"

"If it is regarding food and water rations, tell them that I intend to address the situation in a televised press conference later this evening," Salamander responded. One thing that hadn't changed in the 23rd century was the impact of the media; once again, he had learned to use it to his advantage.

"No, Mr. Salamander," the secretary said. "It's a hiker who just returned from the mountains; he says he saw something incredibly strange, and he says he simply must talk to you about it."

Salamander's thoughts turned immediately towards the Vortex. Had it somehow changed? Was it a sign that it would be coming after him? Regardless of what it was, he knew he had to know.

"Very well; show him in."

The hiker was still in his gear, a frantic look on his face.

"Mr. Salamander!" he exclaimed. "You'll never believe what I saw up in the mountains! Never in a million years—"

"Calm down, Friend," Salamander said, pouring a small amount of bottled water into a glass.

Wordlessly, he offered the water to the hiker, who glanced at it for a moment before drinking it down as though it was an elixir. Extra water, however much it was, was always appreciated.

"Tell me what it was that seems to have distressed you," Salamander said.

The hiker finished his drink and caught his breath.

"I was up near the crystals when the lightning started, just as it has been doing—lightning, but no rain."

"Yes, I have been aware of this situation for a long time and have been taking steps to manage it."

"And we appreciate that, Mr. Salamander," the hiker said. "But there's something strange going on. I had turned around to go back once the lightning started, and that's when it appeared, out of nowhere! A large, blue box!"

Salamander's shoulders went rigid.

"What!?" he asked, as he turned to face the hiker.

The hiker nodded, pulling out a digital camera.

"I took a picture of it and ran," he said, handing the camera over.

Salamander took one look at the image of the blue police box and swore, quietly.

"Is everything going to be alright, Mr. Salamander?" the hiker asked.

"I don't know," Salamander replied. "All I can tell you is that you were wise to leave when you did; this box is highly dangerous. I will certainly take whatever measures I have to in order to eliminate this threat." He handed the rest of the water bottle to the hiker after returning the camera. "Take this; you have earned it."

"Thank you, Sir!" the hiker said, eagerly accepting the bottle.

Without a backwards glance, the man left the office, and Salamander immediately paged his secretary over the intercom.

"Yes, Mr. Salamander?"

"Get a message to the head of the militia immediately," he said. "Tell him to take a squad of men to the mountains; they will find a large, blue box, and a man who looks uncannily like me. I want this impostor—and anyone with him—brought to me immediately. Tell them to use force if they have to."

"At once, Mr. Salamander."

"And see to it that my name is not mentioned until they are brought before me!" he ordered.

"As you wish, Mr. Salamander."

Satisfied, Salamander turned his attention back to the window, glaring at the mountains, as though he could give the Doctor the evil eye from where he was standing. Of course, the Doctor would have to show up so soon after Salamander had established his position as a leader!

But things would be different this time, Salamander vowed. He had the element of surprise this time; one chance was all that he needed.

The Doctor would pay dearly for what he had done.

* * *

The Doctor, in the meantime, was nearing the base of the crystals with the intent of getting a better look at their current situation. He could only hope that the situation was reversible; the thought of being stranded in any particular time or place was simply too unpleasant to dwell on.

A bolt of lightning illuminated the sky above him, and he cast a nervous glance at Jamie and Zoe, who were following behind him.

"I do wish that the both of you had taken my advice and stayed behind in the TARDIS!" he chided.

"Well, I want to know more about how these crystals are affecting the Vortex," Zoe said. "It isn't just us, right? If the Time Vortex is too badly damaged, it would have an effect on everything, everywhere. Wouldn't it?"

The Doctor gave a nod.

"I… I'm afraid so, Zoe. The effects could be far-reaching and catastrophic indeed. But it's still my concern, not yours; and it certainly isn't safe for the two of you to be out here in the middle of a lightning storm!"

"I'm sure it cannae be safe for ye to be oot here, either," Jamie pointed out. "Ye have just as much talent as we have for getting into trouble—if not more! The last time we ran into a beastie—"

"Yes, yes; you've made your point, Jamie. Carry on—but do be careful, and keep as low to the ground as you can!"

The two obeyed, and the Doctor had to admit that this, at least, was preferable to the two of them wandering off to places unknown, as what usually tended to happen.

As the Doctor made his way closer to the base of the crystals, he noticed the hydroelectric building (currently closed, as the canals were dry), and then noticed the machine constructed not too far from it.

"Hello, what's this?" he murmured, as he neared it. "Temperature readings, humidity readings, barometric pressure readings…"

"It must be some sort of weather recording system," Zoe said

"Why are there settings to adjust the humidity and all the other readings?" the Doctor. "You know, I don't think this is merely for recording the weather; I do believe that this was constructed to _control_ the weather!"

"Aye, ye mean to stop the drought?" Jamie asked. "If so, it's nae working verra well, is it?"

"Obviously not. But, on the other hand…" The Doctor looked up at the crystals, and at the absorbed Vortex energy within them. "I wonder whether this is somehow intentionally done."

"Why would anyone want to use a weather machine on the Vortex?" Zoe asked. "What would the hope to gain by damaging it? You just said a moment ago that the effects would be far-reaching; it's highly likely that they would be suffering greatly from those affects if they were going to reach across all of time and space."

"I know that, and you two know that. But it's highly likely that the ones behind this contraption don't. Nor do they realize the consequences of what they have already done."

"But it _is_ reversible?" Zoe asked, not keen on being stranded here, either.

"We can only hope so…" the Doctor said. "The way I see it, we have a chance as long as the amount of time energy displaced is below what can be considered a critical point. If this critical point is reached—if too much energy is displaced…"

"…The Vortex will become completely unstable…" Zoe said.

"…Leading to a devastating chain reaction across space and time as it collapsed in upon itself," the Doctor finished, fear evident in his eyes. "A reverse Big Bang!"

Jamie just shook his head as the Doctor and Zoe conversed. The concepts were sailing over his head, and the Doctor clearly had too much on his mind to be bothered with giving him a lesson now. One thing was for certain; very bad things would happen if they didn't fix it—things that the Doctor seemed to be afraid of. And Jamie knew from experience that if the Doctor was afraid, then he and Zoe had better be, too.

The Scot was about to ask how he could aid in reversing this impending cataclysm when the sound of machinery distracted him. He glanced down the slope of the mountain to see about a dozen men speeding up the mountainside on sleek hovercrafts.

"Doctor!" he called. "Doctor, there's a—"

Jamie was cut off with a yelp as the man in the lead fired a laser gun, aiming at the ground just beneath the Scot's feet.

"Run!" the Doctor ordered, seizing Jamie and Zoe by their arms.

Laser fire erupted all around them, either at their feet or over their heads as voices ordered them to halt.

"Can we tell them we mean no harm!?" Jamie yelped.

"There is a time to reason and a time to retreat!" the Doctor exclaimed, as he guided them around the large crystals in the hope of dodging their pursuers.

Some of the hovercrafts proceeded past them, continuing in a straight line, but a few of them had spotted the trio's diversion and were still in pursuit. Beams from powerful searchlights fell upon the trio. The Doctor, his Gallifreyan sense of vision more enhanced than that of his human companions, had been the most affected by the blinding light. He let go of his companions' arms as he stumbled on the rocky ground and fell, knowing that his role had just switched to that of the decoy.

" _Doctor_!" Jamie and Zoe exclaimed.

"Keep going!" he ordered. "Don't worry about me— _go_!"

Even as he spoke, he was being roughly hauled to his feet by his captors. His vision still only beginning to clear, he had no way of knowing as to the state of his companions.

But then he heard Zoe cry out in alarm, followed by Jamie's angry yell of " _Creag an tuire_!"

As the Doctor's eyes adjusted at last, he saw the Scot attacking the man who had grabbed Zoe by the arm. His plan, careless as it was, worked; the man released Zoe and then turned his attention to Jamie as a second assailant crept up behind him.

There was no time for the Doctor or Zoe to call out a warning; the second man seized Jamie by the arm and judo-flipped him backwards. The Scot's yell of anger turned into a cry of pain as he collided with one of the crystals; for an instant, the crystal glowed brightly as Jamie made contact with it, and then the Scot's body took on the same, unearthly glow for that same instant—just before he fell to the ground, unconscious.

* * *


	3. Startled Eyes that Sometimes See

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes: According to Big Finish, it was the Second Doctor who first learned Venusian aikido, so I'm going to go with that….

The sad irony to being a Time Lord, the Doctor realized, was that even though you had knowledge and abilities that other life forms could barely begin to imagine, there still would be times when you would be completely helpless—especially if the situation involved the ones you cared about.

And as he remained trapped by his captors, forced to see Jamie get thrown backwards, getting knocked unconscious after colliding with the glowing crystal, the Doctor knew this was one of those moments.

"Jamie! _Jamie_!"

The Time Lord's gaze darted from the fallen boy to the crystals as he struggled against the men holding him. That unearthly glow—he had seen that glow briefly envelop Jamie. He didn't want to think about the implications, but it was clear that this was even worse than it looked.

Zoe hadn't noticed the glow at all; it had happened much too quickly for her to see that brief instant of impact. But she was more than angered at what Jamie's assailant had done; grabbing the man's arm as he turned his attention back to her, she proceeded to throw him over her shoulder, and quickly dealt the next closest one the same treatment; he collided with the first man, dazed.

The men holding the Doctor loosened their grips on him as their attention focused on Zoe—only slightly, but it gave the Doctor the leverage he needed to free his arms. And that was all he needed.

"HAI!"

He had only recently learned Venusian aikido and hadn't had a chance to try it out in a practical situation, but now was as good a time as any—and the men's treatment of Jamie had certainly given him enough motivation to go all-out. His first captor dropped like a stone, and the second one soon followed.

Between him and Zoe, the five assailants—two of them struggling to hold onto their senses—quickly realized that they were too few in number to gain any sort of advantage. They quickly got onto their hovercrafts, the two punch-drunk ones hitching a ride.

"Doctor!" Zoe exclaimed. "Is Jamie—?"

The Gallifreyan was by the Scot's side in an instant, gently checking him for bruises and burns, of which there were neither.

"There are no marks on him," he declared. "And his pulse is normal. He's just unconscious."

"Thank goodness," Zoe sighed. "Everything is alright, then?"

The Doctor didn't respond, looking up at the crystals with trepidation.

"Well, yes, there's still that problem with the crystals and the Vortex," Zoe sighed. "But we can find an answer, can't we?"

"I don't think the problem is confined to just the crystals now," the Doctor said, going pale. "There's a lesser amount of time energy in the crystals now than there was just a few minutes ago."

"But where could it have gotten to?" Zoe asked. "Certainly not the Vortex—it would have started raining due to it displacing the water inside of it. The time energy _has_ to have gone somewhere. The law of conservation of energy clearly states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed."

"Yes… that's very true," the Doctor admitted. "And it wasn't destroyed. It was transferred."

"Transferred?" Zoe repeated. "But I don't see…" She trailed off as the Doctor looked down at the unconscious Jamie. "You aren't suggesting…"

"Zoe, did you actually see what happened when that man threw Jamie against the crystals?"

"No; by the time I turned around, he was already on the ground."

"When Jamie collided with the crystals, his body took on that same glow," the Doctor said, indicating the crystals.

"And he absorbed some of the time energy?!" Zoe exclaimed. "How is that even possible!?"

"The Vortex energy seems to be displacing water on account of this machine," the Doctor said. "And, of course, living cells are seventy percent water."

"So… Jamie's cells are filled with time energy?" Zoe asked, her eyes wide. "Is he going to be alright!?"

The Doctor gently cradled the Scot in his arms.

"We should be thankful that he only made contact with the crystals of a brief instant," he said. "Even a second longer, and he could have taken in enough energy to cause devastating cellular damage. However, even a small amount like this is still serious; we shall have to keep him properly hydrated…"

"That's going to be a challenge, seeing as though we're in the middle of a drought…" Zoe said, glumly.

The Doctor nodded and fished around in his pockets until he found a canteen. He frowned as he shook it, realizing there was only a small amount of water left.

"Well, this will have to do for now; we can get him more water once we take him back to the TARDIS," he declared, as he gently propped Jamie's head up and began to give him the water.

Reflexively, the Scot began to drink, which the Doctor took as a good sign.

"So, if we keep him hydrated, he will be fine, won't he?" Zoe asked, her eyes wide with concern.

"I… I honestly don't _know_ ," the Doctor admitted, helplessly. "This has never happened before; I've only heard stories and warnings from my people about the dangers of absorbing time energy. Of course, those cases were often about unfortunate individuals who absorbed considerable quantities of time energy. I'm banking on the fact that Jamie's case may not be as severe…"

The water seemed to be having an added reviving effect on the Scot. The boy winced, but began to stir.

"Jamie? Jamie, can you hear me?"

Jamie suddenly sat upright, his eyes flying open, startling both Zoe and the Doctor, who hadn't been expecting it.

"We need to run!" he exclaimed. "They've got us surrounded; we've got to get oot of here and back to the TARDIS!"

"Jamie! Jamie, calm down," the Doctor said, placing his hands on the Scot's shoulders. "We're perfectly safe; we've sent those men off."

"And forget them for the moment!" Zoe added, relieved that he seemed physically unharmed. "Jamie, how are you feeling?"

"Och, this is nae the time to talk about how we're feeling; we're being surrounded by three dozen men!" Jamie exclaimed.

"Jamie, it's just us," the Doctor insisted.

"But they're _there_!" he insisted. "Why don't ye believe me!? There's a squad coming down the mountain, a squad climbing up, and two more from each of the other sides! They mean to capture us!"

He looked back at the Doctor, and that was when the Gallifreyan saw it—the same unearthly glow that was present in the crystals was inside Jamie's eyes, albeit faintly. Slowly, the glow lessened, remaining only in the pupils of the Scot's eyes; as this happened, he began to calm down.

"Are… are ye sure they're not there?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm quite sure…" the Doctor said, still looking highly concerned and upset by what he was seeing. "But… you say you _saw_ them there?"

"Aye… Aye, I saw them, clear as day…"

He looked around, and Zoe even got to her feet to look, but there was nobody else in sight.

"There's absolutely no one else around," she declared. "You must have been dreaming just before you woke up."

"I don't think it was a dream," the Doctor said, glancing at the crystals again before looking back to Jamie. He now nodded in understanding. "Jamie, I do believe you saw a vision of the future."

"Eh?" the Scot asked, confused.

"Doctor!" Zoe chided. "You're a man of science, and you know so much about the space-time continuum; surely you know it's impossible to predict the future or to have visions like that!"

"Yes, but remember—time is relative. That applies to time energy; past, present, and future—all points—are accessible from within the Time Vortex due to this energy. And, right now, Jamie has a small amount of it in his cells—a small amount, but enough to augment his precognitive abilities."

Jamie looked to the Doctor, highly disconcerted.

"I have _what_!?"

"I'll explain in a moment," the Doctor said. "But if those men are going to be returning with reinforcements, then we shouldn't stay out here in the open. Can you walk?"

"Aye, I think so…" Jamie said, as the others helped him up.

As they found cover behind the rocks, the Doctor quickly explained what had happened, which didn't do much to ease the Scot's worries.

"Do you remember the time you dreamed about the unicorn?" the Doctor asked.

"Aye—and then we actually saw one in the Land of Fiction!"

"Was that a form of precognition, too?" Zoe asked.

"Exactly. You see, many species across the galaxies have some sort of a sixth sense," the Doctor explained. "It serves as a way to be alert to potential dangers. Sometimes, in higher species, the sixth sense manifests itself in dreams, as it did that time you dreamed about the unicorn. Usually, we dismiss these dreams until they come to pass; in hindsight, we say that you had a case of precognition. But this situation is quite different, given the circumstances. The time energy seems to have affected your sixth sense, resulting in you having that vision you just had."

He pulled a mirror from his pocket to show Jamie what had happened to his eyes. They were mostly normal now, save for the faint glow in his pupils.

"Am I bewitched!?"

"I told you, Jamie; it's the time energy. As of now, the only effects it seems to be having on you are this glow, heightened precognition, and a displacement of some of the water in your cells."

"Aye, so… what's going to happen to me now that I have this condition?" the Scot asked. "Will I be alright?"

The Doctor did not reply immediately, much to Jamie and Zoe's worry.

"Doctor…?" Zoe prompted.

"I don't know," he said again. "But I can promise you one thing, Jamie—I will do everything in my power to try to ensure that you will be. For that to work, you're going to have to trust me completely."

Jamie nodded, trembling slightly.

"Aye," he said. "Of course I trust ye."

The Gallifreyan smiled, trying to silently reassure his companion that things would be alright.

"First things first," he added, handing him the canteen. "You need to remain hydrated. That, for the moment, is the greatest danger."

Jamie nodded, taking a drink, but then nearly choked as the Doctor's words sunk in.

"For the moment!?"

"I still don't know what the long-term effects of this are," the Doctor said, running a hand through his hair. "There are things that are just not meant to be!"

Jamie lowered his gaze.

"Like me."

The Doctor immediately regretted his choice of words.

"You are most certainly meant to be," he insisted, placing a hand on Jamie's shoulder. "But you were not meant to take in time energy. But I know you well enough to say that you will make the best of whatever it brings you."

"And ye have no idea what that'll be?" Jamie asked, glumly.

"None, I'm afraid. Well, actually… This is just a guess, mind you," the Doctor said. "But one thing I can predict is that you'll probably have other visions the longer the energy remains within you."

"But that's not a bad thing, right?" Zoe asked. "Precognition sounds like it could be very useful—especially in a situation like this, where we might be stranded in an unfriendly place with people after us."

But the Doctor shook his head.

"Precognition is _not_ a blessing," he said, sternly. "I want the both of you to understand that."

Jamie just stared at him, blankly.

"I'm sorry, but I _don't_ understand," Zoe stated, and Jamie was grateful for her echoing his thoughts. "There's a lot about this situation that I don't understand, actually."

"Yes… yes, I know it's difficult to grasp. To be honest, I'm still trying to get my own head around the fact that it's happened. But the way time works…" The Doctor trailed off, his ears catching the approach of hovercrafts from all around them, as Jamie had foreseen.

He placed a finger to his lips, silently indicating for his companions to remain silent. He didn't know why these men were so persistent in their pursuit, but he knew one thing—they could not afford to be captured.


	4. Darkened Rolling Figures

The air was soon filled with the sound of the approaching hovercrafts. Slowly, the Doctor peered out from behind their cover of rocks. A flash of lightning revealed nearly two dozen men dismounting from the vehicles, each holding a laser weapon; the glow from the crystals bathed them in a strange light, the majority of their imposing figures obscured by darkness.

The Doctor ducked back down, pulling Jamie and Zoe close to him.

"How many?" Jamie whispered.

"Too many," the Doctor whispered back. "It's going to take more than Venusian aikido to deal with all of them."

Zoe shuddered.

"I don't understand," she whispered. "We didn't do a single thing wrong; we just came here for a closer look. Why would someone attack us like that?"

"There was nothing in my diary about them being aggressive," the Doctor whispered back. "I really can't understand it, either."

"Maybe we're in a restricted area?" Jamie asked.

"Can't be," Zoe said. "We'd have seen signs or a fence…"

"Shh!" the Doctor said, holding them even closer as the men drew nearer.

They all fell silent, Jamie clinging to the Doctor's arm as he usually did in situations like this. Getting attacked was nothing new; it was all part and parcel of traveling with the Doctor. But, usually, there was some reason as to why they would be attacked—especially if their attackers were human, as these were…

His thoughts began to fade, and suddenly, he was no longer thinking about the men surrounding them, but of the spot they were sitting in.

He saw a bolt of lightning… a crack of thunder… And the three of them running… running for their lives…

With a yelp, he tried to get up and run, but the Doctor's arm was still locked around him. The Time Lord quietly chided him to be quiet.

"We need to get oot of here!" Jamie protested. "We need to run!"

"We can't run; we'd never make it!" the Doctor hissed. "Now, shush; you'll give us away!"

"But—"

" _Quiet_!"

But Jamie would not sit still; he fought against the Doctor's hold.

"Jamie, for the final time… Oh, my word!"

He had glanced back at the Scot in frustration, only to see his eyes glowing brighter again, just as they had been upon his awakening—and his last vision.

Zoe let out a quiet gasp, and the Doctor now let Jamie go; the Scot moved to haul both the Doctor and Zoe to their feet. As they started running, the squad of men spotted them.

"There they are!" the one in the lead snarled. "Apprehend them at once and take them back to—"

His words were cut off as a bolt of lightning struck the spot behind the rocks were the trio had been only moments before. Thunder boomed, and Zoe cried out involuntarily, her ears ringing as the darkened figures began to rush towards them, stopping as the lightning strike shook them up.

"Keep going!" the Doctor ordered, his voice barely audible. "Run! Back to the TARDIS!"

The squad of men, also temporarily incapacitated by the proximity of the lightning strike, took a moment to realize that the trio had made progress with their escape. They ran for their hovercrafts, a few of the firing their lasers over the trio as warnings.

"Don't look back!" the Doctor ordered, as he saw Zoe attempting to do so. "Keep going! And for pity's sake—stay with me!"

Not willing to take any chances of getting separated, he grabbed on to his companions' wrists, fleeing in his usual ungainly run. He changed their path several times, once even doubling back in the hopes of throwing their pursuers off of their trail.

Somehow, they managed to make it back to the TARDIS; the Doctor practically shoved them both inside before following and locking the doors.

"Are you both alright?!" he asked.

"I… I think so…" Zoe said, exhausted.

The Doctor looked to Jamie, who could only manage a nod. The Gallifreyan looked alarmed at the sweat pouring down the Scot's face and quickly refilled the water canteen, handing it back to him.

"Drink up."

Jamie nodded again, grateful for the cold water. Zoe got to her feet after making sure he was okay and stood beside the Doctor at the console.

"Are we leaving?" she asked.

The Doctor looked at the readings on the console, his face falling.

"We couldn't, even if we wanted to," he said, flipping the dematerialization switch in vain. "It's just as I feared—between the loss of time energy in the vortex and the intake of the water, the TARDIS can't go."

"Is it because of me?" Jamie asked, joining them now. "I mean… Have I made things worse? …If there's anything I could do—"

"No, no, no," the Doctor said, placing his hands on Jamie's shoulders again. "The amount of time energy in your cells would not be able to have such an impact on the TARDIS. With you, my major concern is both the danger of dehydration and the dangers of foreseeing the future."

"You never did explain why that was a bad thing," Zoe said.

"If you give me a moment, I shall," the Doctor promised. "But, right now, I wish to test a little theory I have that may solve both of Jamie's problems in one go if I am correct in my reasoning."

"Aye? What's that?"

To Jamie and Zoe's utter astonishment, the Doctor pulled a gun from one of his pockets. Jamie yelped and backed away as he pointed it at him.

"Doctor, you can't!" Zoe shrieked.

"Oh, _really_ —what do you think I am!?" the Gallifreyan exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "It's a _water pistol_."

"Oh…" Zoe said, looking embarrassed.

"Ye could've told me that before ye pointed that at me…" Jamie grumbled. "Hold on… _Why_ are ye pointing that at me?"

"Because, as I said, I am testing a theory," the Doctor explained. "It was your sudden collision with the crystals holding the time energy that caused some of it to displace the water your cells. With that in mind, it's reasonable to suspect that a sudden shock of water may reverse the process."

"Do you really think that will work?" Zoe asked.

"This is a learning experience for me, too, Zoe; I really don't know what will work. But if there's a chance that it might help Jamie, I am most certainly willing to try whatever idea seems feasible. Now then, Jamie, are you ready?"

"Do I even have a choice…?"

"Jamie, you said you would trust me," the Doctor said, softly. "I'm admitting to you now that I don't really know what I'm doing. But one thing I do know is that helping you is the most important thing right now—even more important than getting off of this planet. Are you willing to try this?"

Jamie nodded.

"Right, then. Here we go. Do try not to blink; I want to try this in your eyes, since that's where the energy seems to be most concentrated…"

Zoe stood and watched as the Doctor fired the water pistol into each of the Scot's eyes. He yelped again each time, and after rubbing the excess water out of them, grabbed for the Doctor's mirror.

"Och, it didn't work," he said, seeing that his eyes were still glowing.

"Yes, I thought that sounded too easy…" the Doctor sighed. "Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained…"

"I don't know," Zoe said. "You seemed to have a good idea. But maybe it's an all-or-nothing sort of thing in this case; the energy may be concentrated in Jamie's eyes, but his other cells would be holding some of it, wouldn't they?"

"Yes…" the Doctor agreed, his eyes narrowing as he came up with another idea. "Perhaps if we saturate as many of his cells with water as we can, that just might be what we need!"

"What do ye mean by saturate?" Jamie asked, not liking the sound of it.

"I mean stand right here and be patient. Zoe, follow me. And grab those buckets we were using earlier back when we were mopping up."

"Oh, no…" Jamie groaned, as he watched them take the buckets. Sure enough, they returned with the buckets filled with water.

The TARDIS suddenly whirred in protest, prompting the Doctor to glance at the console and sigh in exasperation. He motioned for Zoe to wait, and he left the console room again, returning with a small, metal basin.

"Could you stand in that, please, Jamie?"

The Scot threw his hands up in the air in frustration, but obeyed, and then braced himself for the inevitable—

"On 'three,' then, Zoe?"

"Right."

"One… two… three!"

Despite his best efforts to simply grin and bear it, an involuntary curse passed Jamie's lips.

"We ought to wash his mouth out, too," Zoe sniffed.

"Come now, Zoe; he has every right to be upset… I truly am sorry, Jamie. Let's have a look, shall we?"

Jamie brushed the wet hair out of his eyes and glanced back at the Doctor. The Time Lord's face fell slightly.

"No difference?" Jamie asked.

"None that I can see, I'm afraid. Well, so much for my theory…"

"No, I think your theory could still work," Zoe said. "Two buckets of water can hardly be considered saturating his cells. For one thing, we've barely saturated any of them—he had his clothes on the whole time!"

"Oh, yes. Yes, that's quite true. Jamie…"

He trailed off at the utterly indignant look on the Scot's face.

"Er, yes. Perhaps you'd better take a shower, Jamie."

"Oh. Aye, I'll… I'll do that."

He stepped out of the basin with as much dignity as he could salvage and headed down the corridor adjoining the console room.

"And while you're in there, try using soap," Zoe called after him.

"How about ye try closing your mouth once in a while, eh?!"

"That's quite enough!" the Doctor chided them. "We're all on the same side here, after all!"

He sighed as he began to mop up Jamie's trail of footprints.

"Just because he's from the 18th century doesn't mean he has to hold on to their hygiene habits," Zoe said, grabbing a second mop to help him.

"You're not giving him enough credit," the Doctor said. "He's had to make several adjustments since leaving his time—and you weren't here to witness most of them! And he is, at least, taking daily showers now."

"Which are useless if he's not using soap!"

"Why is this bothering you all of a sudden?"

"Oh, it's not the soap that's bothering me," she admitted. "It's this whole mess. I'm worried about those men—and why we were attacked by them. But then there's Jamie, and… I'm so worried about him."

"I thought as much," the Gallifreyan said. "So am I. You know the real reason I'm insisting on his drinking all that water?"

"No. Why?"

"If he gets too dehydrated, his cells might become unstable with the time energy in them—and break down."

"Oh, Doctor!"

"Yes, I know."

"You should tell him! His life is depending on this! Oh, you know how he is; he's liable to try going on as long as he can without water just to prove his own endurance, or some other foolish reason!"

"And I fully intend to tell him," the Doctor promised. "I'm just waiting for the right chance. He has plenty to worry about now as it is; you heard him—he thinks he's making the situation worse."

"Is he?"

"Of course not! What I said is true—his problem has no bearing on the problems in the Vortex."

"Well, that's good to know, at any rate," Zoe sighed. "I guess that means that things couldn't possibly get any worse, right?"

A loud hammering on the TARDIS doors cause them both to stare in that direction; angry shouting and laser fire were also audible, and the Doctor winced.

"Zoe, my dear, I wish you hadn't said that…"


	5. Lost in Scenes of Smoke Filled Dreams

Zoe backed away from the TARDIS doors, startled.

"Oh, Doctor, what do we do!?"

"Nothing," the Time Lord said, after looking over the console and assessing the situation. "Fortunately, I remembered to lock the doors; we're quite safe from them."

"Do you mean to tell me that those doors can keep out an angry mob like that?" Zoe asked, amazed.

"Next time you see Genghis Khan, ask him."

Zoe stared at him in amazement.

"That's incredible!"

"Yes, isn't it?" the Doctor said, though he still looked worried. "Unfortunately, there's every chance in the world that they'll just sit outside and wait for us to exit. And if they get too tired, they'll bring a new squad to take their place."

"Well, the good news is that we have everything we need here to survive," Zoe said. "Unfortunately, with the Vortex the way it is, we can't dematerialize and get out of here. And if they won't let us out, we can't try to fix it—and then we're _really_ in trouble!"

"You have illustrated our situation very well," the Doctor intoned.

Zoe thought for a moment.

"I suppose I could just run out there and try to lead them away; that will give you a chance to go back to the weather machine and—"

The Doctor gently placed a finger over her lips.

"Don't even think about it," he said. "If anyone is going out there to deal with that crowd, it shall be me."

"But, Doctor—"

"Don't fret," he assured her. "I'm sure this is all a large misapprehension on their part; once I explain that we just happened to wander past that machine quite by chance and that we mean no harm, I'm sure they'll understand and leave us alone."

"Let's hope so…"

The Doctor headed back towards the console and was about to unlock the doors when a loud _thud_ echoed from down the corridor, startling him.

"What was that!?" Zoe exclaimed.

"…I don't know!" the Doctor replied. "It sounded like something falling, but I can't imagine…" He trailed off, his eyes widening. "Jamie!"

"Oh, dear!"

They found him, clad in a towel, having collapsed halfway into the corridor. He was conscious, but wasn't aware of their presence at all—and his eyes were still glowing brightly with the energy from the Vortex. But, more than that, he was clearly in distress, trembling as he clawed at the ground.

"He's having another vision!" the Doctor realized. "Jamie! Jamie, can you hear me!?"

"Trying to saturate his cells with water didn't help," Zoe said, discouraged. "What if he's like this forever?"

"There have to be other ways," the Doctor said. "But, right now, I am more concerned with what he's seeing; it clearly must be very disturbing…" He placed a hand on Jamie's shoulder, hoping that a familiar presence would help snap him out of it. "Jamie!"

"Fire…" the Scot gasped, clawing at the ground. "Have to… get away."

"There is no fire, Jamie!" the Doctor assured him. "You're quite safe. Can you hear me, Jamie? Listen to my voice—focus!"

"…Doctor…?"

"Yes, that's right! Keep focusing!"

But Jamie only seemed to grow more worried.

"Have to… save him…"

"Save who?"

"The Doctor…"

"…But I'm right here, Jamie! I'm fine!"

"The fire!" the Scot cried. "He's in the fire!"

"I'm in the… oh, dear…" He pushed that thought aside. "Jamie! Jamie, wake up! Just shut your eyes and listen to me—"

Zoe had darted back to the console room, but now returned with the metal basin that Jamie had been standing in earlier when they had poured the water on him. In one quick movement, she threw the water that was in it, soaking both Jamie and the Doctor. The Doctor yelped in surprise, but the water did bring Jamie around. The Scot gasped as he became aware of his surroundings again, the glow in his eyes subsiding and being restricted to his pupils once again.

"I'm sorry…" Zoe said. "It was the only thing I could think of…" She also cast a nervous glance at the ceiling as she realized just how much water she had gotten on the floor. "Sorry…"

"That's quite alright, Zoe; it worked…" the Doctor said, good-naturedly pulling the wet strands of hair out of his eyes. "Are you feeling better, Jamie?"

"Aye, I…" Jamie trailed off as he remembered what he had seen, and he looked up at the Doctor in horror. "No!"

The Doctor's face fell.

"What did you see?"

"The fire!" the piper cried. "Ye're trapped in the fire!"

"Start from the beginning," the Doctor said, gently, as he held Jamie's shoulder in a reassuring grip again.

"I donnae quite know…" Jamie said. "I… I started seeing a fire… and then it grew and grew… And the room changed—it was a rickety, wooden building, with machines and things stored in it…"

"A warehouse of some kind?"

"Aye, that. And the fire grew and grew… And then I saw ye—chained to one of the machines. All alone. And the fire was getting closer and closer to ye… Someone had chained you up there and left ye to burn!"

"It must be that mad crowd out there!" Zoe gasped. "So much for them being understanding after an explanation of things!"

"Mad crowd?" Jamie asked. "Ye mean those mercenaries who were after us back at the machine!?"

"Exactly! They're outside right now, trying to get inside the TARDIS. The Doctor says that they can't get inside, but…"

"I assure you, they can only get inside if I let them!" the Doctor insisted.

"Even so, you can't possibly try to talk to them, knowing what they've got in store for you!" Zoe said.

"Eh!?" Jamie asked.

"He was going to go out there and try to talk to those horrible men!" Zoe said.

Jamie looked to the Doctor in shock.

"Aye, well," Jamie sighed. "At least now ye know not to go oot there and talk to them, eh?"

But the Doctor looked solemn as he glanced from Jamie to Zoe.

"Actually…" he said. "Now I _have_ to go and talk to them."

" _What_!?" they chorused.

"But ye can't!" Jamie exclaimed, grabbing the Doctor's shoulders and shaking him slightly. "Have ye gone mad!? Don't ye understand what I saw!? I don't even know if ye'll make it oot of that alive or nae!"

"I understand perfectly, Jamie," the Doctor said, calmly. "And now I need you to understand something. What you saw… it isn't a warning for me to avoid a situation. What you saw is something that _must_ happen."

"No…" Jamie said, shaking his head slowly.

"This is what you meant, isn't it?" Zoe asked, quietly. "About precognition not being a blessing?"

"Yes, Zoe, I'm afraid so," he said. "Time travel is a highly complicated thing. There are rules. And among those rules is the fact that you cannot, under any circumstances, change history."

"But this is nae history!" Jamie said. "It's the future!"

"If you'll give me a moment, I'll make the comparison," the Doctor said. "The reason why you cannot change history is because history is something that is known to have happened. To change it could damage the fabric of space and time. Precognition of the future acts in the same way; you know of an event, so it must happen. To try to change it or to try to stop it from happening will result in the same damage. The Time Vortex is already badly damaged as it is, one little paradox could be all it takes to push everything to the critical point. And everything we know would be destroyed."

"So… we'll have to say goodbye either way?" Zoe asked, softly.

"We don't know that," the Doctor said. "As Jamie said, we don't know what will happen to me." He gave a lopsided smile. "Why, I might end up using my brilliant ingenuity to get out of that fire in five minutes!"

But Jamie and Zoe couldn't smile back; they were both far too worried. Even though they knew the Doctor had a knack for getting in and out of trouble on a regular basis, there was always the fear that his luck would eventually run out.

"Are ye sure there's no other way?" Jamie asked. The vision he had seen was not leaving his consciousness now. The Doctor certainly hadn't looked confident in his vision; if anything, he had looked on the verge of panic.

The Doctor considered Jamie's words, and then the description of his vision. If the absolute worst did happen, a well-aimed blast of regeneration energy could compromise the chain—if not the entire warehouse itself. From there, escape would be possible. Of course, regeneration was something he had a strong desire to avoid; hopefully, there would be some other way out.

"It's going to be alright, Jamie," he promised. "I don't know what's going to happen—and there are plenty of things that can happen. But I can promise you that I'll find some way out of it, even if it takes drastic measures—"

A loud, deep _clungg_ , echoing through the corridors of the TARDIS, interrupted him. Zoe and Jamie both clutched at the Doctor's arms in fright as a second _clungg_ echoed again. Then another. Then another.

The Doctor's previously confident expression vanished, and was replaced by one of absolute dread.

"Oh, no…" he said, as the same sound continued to repeat, over and over again. "No, no, no…"

"What _is_ it?" Jamie asked, cringing. The sound seemed to reverberate right through him with every chime.

"The TARDIS's Cloister Bell," the Doctor said. "This is her way of telling us that time and space are in imminent peril." He held his companions close, no longer fearing for himself. "We're running out of time—in every sense of the phrase."


	6. Minds Have Slowed

Salamander had spent the last several hours pacing his office. The Doctor's presence unnerved him; his double had cost him everything once before, and it was well within his power to do it again. And he hated it—hated the Doctor, and hated being afraid of him. There had to be some way— _some way_ —that would give Salamander power… Something that would ensure that the people of Neo Serenity would listen to him, and not the Doctor…

Salamander gave a start as the phone on his desk rang; the display announced that it was the leader of the squad he had ordered to go to the mountains.

"Yes?" he asked, desperate for news. "Have you got them?"

"No, Mr. Salamander," the Squad Leader said, apologetically. "There were three of them—the impostor, a girl, and a Scots boy. We had almost apprehended them when the impostor and the girl used some sort of martial art on us."

" _What_!?"

The Doctor having used martial arts hadn't surprised him, but he hadn't expected that girl—Waterfield, wasn't it?—to have had such pluck.

"We retreated and returned with reinforcements," the Squad Leader continued. "But… something odd happened."

"Odd?" Salamander repeated. "I ask you to bring me prisoners—not to gawk at odd happenings!"

"It was that Scots boy, Mr. Salamander," the Squad Leader said, a tremble evident in his voice. "There's something… odd about him. His eyes… They weren't normal, Mr. Salamander. They were glowing; I'd seen that glow before—in the crystals."

Salamander's eyebrows arched.

"What are you trying to say?" he asked.

"That boy has an unnatural glow in his eyes, just like in the crystals," the man explained. "And it seemed to give him some amount of foresight—he was able to predict the exact moment and location of a lightning strike. They used that knowledge to escape from us."

Salamander mulled over this, and then exhaled as an idea finally came to him.

"Where are they now?" he asked.

"They have taken refuge inside a blue, wooden box," the Squad Leader said. "We have been trying to break in without success."

"I suggest you abandon any attempts to break in; you will not succeed," Salamander said. "Instead, have some of your men guard the weather machine and the crystals."

"You think they will return?" the Squad Leader asked.

"I am certain of it," Salamander replied. "Now, listen carefully to my instructions. There is also a chance that they may try to enter the city. Before that happens, there should be wanted posters of the Scots boy spread all over the city—with the citizens instructed to turn him in to the authorities, should they see him. What you have just told me confirms what I have suspected for the longest time—that this boy is responsible for the drought! He must have been hiding in the mountains for a long time, sabotaging the weather machine! Be sure to spread the word about him."

"At once, Mr. Salamander," the Squadron Leader said. "But what about the impostor? And the girl?"

"If you can apprehend them, as well, then do so. But the boy should be the main focus—capturing him will result in the other two surrendering soon enough."

"Understood, Mr. Salamander. Your instructions will be followed to the letter."

"See that they are," Salamander said, and he ended the call without another word.

He resumed his pacing, although now, he was not as nervous as he was before. He had the upper hand this time—turning the entire populace against that McCrimmon boy would shatter any attempts for the Doctor to try to sway the people to his side. And with this odd glow in the boy's eyes, apparently identical to the crystals, the people would have no hesitation in blaming him for the drought.

Salamander had found the perfect scapegoat.

* * *

Zoe cringed as the Cloister Bell continued to toll.

"It's nae stopping!" Jamie exclaimed, shouting to make himself heard over it.

The Doctor continued to hold the both of them close.

"It won't," he said, simply. "Not until the problem with the Vortex is fixed."

"Then we need to go back to the machine right away and fix the problem," Zoe said. "I'm sure we can work out what's wrong if we can gain access to that machine…"

The Doctor sighed.

"I don't know if I'll be able to," he said. "Depending on how long they'll keep me in that warehouse… Now don't look at me like that—it's going to be fine…" He trailed off, trying to clear his throat of the growing lump. Even if he managed to escape the fire with just a regeneration, the fact of the matter was that this could very well be the last time that he would look upon Jamie and Zoe with this face.

And that knowledge hurt.

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Zoe asked.

"Not right now," the Doctor said. "It… It's not safe for you out there. I don't want you two locked up in that warehouse with me."

"Maybe I was wrong…" Jamie said, now grasping at straws. "Maybe… maybe I had fallen asleep and I was dreaming e'erything that I saw! It… it was all just a nightmare… just a bad dream…"

The Doctor gave him a sad smile.

"I think we both know that it isn't."

Jamie looked to the ground for a moment, cringing as the Cloister Bell continued to toll, before looking back at the Doctor.

"This is all my fault, isn't it?" he asked.

"Of course it's not!" the Doctor insisted.

"If I had nae seen it, ye wouldn't have to resign to this," the Scot said.

The Doctor searched in vain for words of comfort, but could find none; the truth of the matter was that the future would have remained in flux if Jamie hadn't foreseen it. Now it was fixed.

"I don't want to hear you blaming yourself, Jamie," he said, at last. "Just trust in my ability to pop in and out of trouble."

Neither Jamie nor Zoe looked convinced.

"Ye're sure we cannae go with ye?" Jamie asked.

"Now why would you want to go and get yourself locked up in a burning warehouse?" the Doctor replied.

"You do," Zoe pointed out.

"Well, I don't have choice in the matter; what must happen, must happen—but there's no need for you to be in danger, too!"

"And I want to make sure that ye're going to be alright," Jamie said. "I really think I should go with ye."

"And I'm instructing the both of you to stay here," the Doctor said, firmly. "Now, please! There's no time for this; we have to act fast! …Well, I have to act, at any rate. Look after each other. And Zoe?"

"Yes?"

"Make sure that Jamie stays hydrated; I don't want to have to worry about him in addition to all of this!"

"Right," she said.

Jamie looked away again; he knew the Doctor hadn't meant anything by it, but, still, the words did sting. And the words did nothing to try to alleviate the Scot's worries that he was to blame for this, even if only slightly.

The Doctor still held on to each of their arms as he led them back to the console room, indicating part of the console.

"This button here controls the doors remotely… Yes, well, you know all about that on account of your wanderings, don't you?"

He was trying to lighten the mood, but Jamie and Zoe continued to look back at him, somberly. He sighed and continued.

"I want you to wait until I give you the word, and then open the doors—and close them immediately after I leave; I don't want them coming in here and hurting the two of you, too," he instructed.

Jamie and Zoe nodded.

"Right," the Doctor said. "There's no time to lose…"

He started to walk towards the doors, but Jamie suddenly dashed across the room, clutching the Doctor's arm.

"Doctor…"

The Gallifreyan shut his eyes briefly, trying not to betray any emotions; he opened them again after a moment and turned back to face the Scot, gently placing a hand on the side of his face.

Zoe hesitated, but walked over to them, as well; the Doctor placed his other hand on the side of her face.

"Until we meet again," he said.

He backed away from them, slowly, and they backed away towards the console, not taking their eyes off of each other.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

"No," Jamie said. "But we donnae have a choice, do we?"

"No, I… I'm afraid we don't. Right, then—on three. One… Two… Three!"

Zoe ignored the unsure feelings she had and hit the button to open the doors. The Doctor dashed outside the TARDIS, and suddenly shouted to them.

"Hold it!" he said. "Hold everything! Don't close the doors!"

"What is it!?" Zoe said. "What's wrong!?"

"There's nobody here!"

Both she and Jamie exchanged glances, and then headed for the doors themselves. Zoe tutted as she silently indicated to Jamie that he was still wearing only a towel; the Scot responded with a shrug, and he and Zoe joined the Doctor outside.

Sure enough, the entire area was deserted.

"Where did they all go?" Jamie wondered aloud.

"I don't know," the Doctor said. "…Of course, it would end up this way, would it? When you want to be captured, you can't…"

"Forgive us if we don't share in yer disappointment," Jamie said. "I'm in no hurry to see ye captured by that crowd of mercenaries. Maybe this is a good sign—that what I saw was wrong."

"I'm afraid not, Jamie. And standing around here wondering where they've gone isn't an option," the Doctor said. "I need to get myself captured."

"Oh, can't you worry about that after we resolve the problem with the Vortex?" Zoe asked.

"If we have any hope of stabilizing the Vortex, this has to happen first," the Doctor explained. "I'll explain in detail when I return."

"If ye return," Jamie said, quietly.

For a moment, the Doctor did contemplate explaining the concept of regeneration to his two companions. But he knew that he was on borrowed time as far as the Vortex stabilization was concerned.

He would just have to hope that he could escape the fire without regenerating. And if that wasn't the case… he'd have to hope that Jamie and Zoe would be accepting of the person he would turn into.

" _When_ I return," he stated, firmly.

He paused, very briefly, to look upon their faces one more time before ushering them back inside the TARDIS.

"Do close the doors," he said. "I have my key; don't open the doors for anyone—understood?"

"Yes, Doctor," Zoe said.

"And remember, Jamie—plenty of water."

Jamie just gave a nod; despite the Doctor's insistence that he would return, the sheer look of terror that had been on the otherworldly man's face in the vision Jamie had suggested otherwise.

The Scot tried very hard not to betray his worry as the Doctor headed off in search of his would-be captors, stopping to give them one last wave goodbye.

"Do ye really think we'll see him again?" he asked.

"I don't know," Zoe said, honestly.

Without another word, they watched the Doctor vanish into the hazy distance.


	7. Pay the Dancer

The Doctor was spared from a long walk to town when, after starting his journey on foot, he happened upon some of the hovercrafts that the crowd of mercenaries had left behind. It was still a puzzle as to why they had left so abruptly, but with only a finite amount of time with which to get captured, hopefully escape, and reverse the damage to the Vortex, he didn't question it; he immediately activated one of the hovercrafts and headed towards the lights of the city.

Even though he was focused on heading for the city, there was the lingering doubt of what would happen once he got there. He certainly didn't _want_ to regenerate, of course, but there was something that worried him greatly if that ended up happening; he remembered how Ben and Polly had reacted when he regenerated for the first time, after what had happened with the Cybermen—how they hadn't even believed who he was at first, despite the fact that he had changed right in front of their eyes. Would Jamie and Zoe ever believe it was still him if he changed—especially if they never even saw it? Would they accept him? And what would he do if they didn't?

Of course, that was all dwarfed by the larger problem at hand. He had to get in and out of that blaze in time; if the continuum collapsed because he was too late, it wouldn't matter how many regenerations he had left. And it wasn't just himself who would suffer from the collapse; Jamie and Zoe would, too, as would anyone else he had ever known and loved. Having Jamie and Zoe upset and distrusting of his next regeneration was preferable to losing them in this manner.

He exhaled, convinced that he had made the right decision. And, of course, in order for this decision to prove fruitful, he had to get captured.

One he arrived within the city limits, he found it fairly easy to ease into the lane of other one-seater hovercrafts, who took no notice of him. Hovercrafts seemed to be the choice method of transportation in Neo Serenity—larger units were used to transport families and couples in the multi-seater lanes. In his lane, the Doctor wasn't moving as quickly as the others; he contemplated merging into one of the other lanes. He knew that this was more than likely illegal, but considering that his end goal was to be captured, he decided that it was well worth the maneuver.

He had just been about to make the lane change when he began to notice posters stuck to lampposts and street signs.

"Hello, what's this…?" the Doctor murmured.

The posters were everywhere, but the lampposts weren't close enough for him to get a good look at them. He soon left the main road altogether when he found the chance, turning onto the streets of downtown Neo Serenity. As he approached the nearest lamppost, he pulled the hovercraft over to the side of the street and switched it off.

The paper had folded over by a breeze, and he walked over to it, folding it back. And a breath caught in his throat.

A sketch of Jamie stared back at him from the paper; the word "WANTED" was printed above the piper's image.

" _What_ …?" the Doctor asked, stunned.

Speechless, he read the description below Jamie's sketch.

 _James McCrimmon_  
Wanted for sabotage and conspiracy against the City of Neo Serenity.  
Likely to be found in the company of a man called the Doctor and a girl called Victoria Waterfield. McCrimmon has been sabotaging the weather machine by means of stealing energy from the open portal, and he is responsible for the current drought as a result; there is a reward for information leading to the capture of McCrimmon and his compatriots.

The Doctor began to pace the pavement, running his hands through his hair as he attempted to try to make sense of the situation.

"He hasn't done a thing!" the Doctor exclaimed aloud, to no one in particular. "Why would they accuse him of sabotage and conspiracy and have the gall to blame him for the drought!?"

He stopped dead in his tracks.

"…And how would they know our names?" he asked.

He turned back towards the wanted posted, rereading it again a few more times. At last, he finally took notice of the glowing mistake on it.

"Victoria…" he murmured. "Not Zoe— _Victoria_."

He gripped the lamppost to steady himself; he was shaking from the sudden realization of the significance of Victoria's name being dragged into the picture.

"This is personal—a vendetta," he realized. "Whoever is behind this knew Jamie and myself while Victoria was still traveling with us… But who? Klieg is dead… The Great Intelligence?"

A look of fear crossed his face and he ducked into the shadows of an alley and now peeked out, looking for Yetis.

"Of course…" he sighed. "Since the Intelligence did escape, it would want to lure me into another trap…"

He trailed off again, realizing that there were no signs of Yetis around—the people of the city were milling around as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

"No…" he breathed. "It's not the Intelligence. The Intelligence wouldn't have made such a mistake—it would've possessed enough eyes and ears to have had one of those mercenaries at the crystals under its direct control. And if it had done that, it would've seen Zoe and known she was not Victoria. But then who…?"

The Doctor looked back in the direction he had come from. Even from where he was standing, he could see the swirling, open Vortex.

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear…" he said. "The Time Vortex… the weather machine… It could only be…" He glanced down, staring at his reflection in a discarded glass bottle. "…Salamander."

He scrambled backward.

"Oh… oh, goodness me! I'm in the wrong place! I need to fix the Vortex first and _then_ worry about that fire!"

The Doctor now ran back out of the alley, intending to get back on the hovercraft and head back out to the weather machine, but he froze in his tracks upon seeing that the hovercraft was not where he left it.

"Oh, now, this _is_ ridiculous!" he exclaimed aloud. "They've stolen my stolen hovercraft!"

"I would not advertise your thievery at such loud volumes, Doctor. You are merely incriminating yourself of further crimes. And aiding and abetting a saboteur is a serious enough crime as it is."

The Doctor froze upon hearing the voice. Slowly, he turned to see a man with a face that was practically his reflection. Salamander stood with his arms folded, a smug expression on his face. He was flanked by a squadron of his mercenaries—dressed the same way as the squad that had attacked them at the weather machine.

"Good to see you again, Doctor."

"There's no need to lie for my sake, Salamander."

"Oh, but it is not a lie, Doctor—it truly is good to see you like this…" Salamander replied. He snapped his fingers, and the mercenaries trained their weapons on the Doctor. "…Under arrest."


	8. Taken its Infractions

Back on the TARDIS, Zoe was pacing the console room, trying to ignore the incessant tolling of the Cloister Bell. The bell hadn't stopped ringing, not even for a minute. Jamie could hear it, too, as he finally got into his kilt and jumper. The dehydration was beginning to catch up to him; he was already feeling very tired and thirsty.

He glanced at the bottles of water and the refilled canteen on his bedside table that Zoe had left there for him. Jamie knew that the Doctor had told him to stay hydrated… but how could he possibly think about that when he might never see him again? There were more important things to deal with.

"I have to get another vision…" he murmured, turning away from the water. "I have to make sure he's going to be alright…"

Sighing, he reclined on his bed, staring at the ceiling, consciously trying to think of the Doctor. It was difficult; his eyelids kept closing from his dehydration-induced fatigue.

"Please… show me what happens…"

As his eyelids opened and closed, he saw hazy images around him—things he didn't understand—images of people and places he didn't recognize… Wait, was that the Brigadier? And where was the Doctor.

"Doctor…?" he asked. "Doctor, where are ye…?"

The visions were changing with rapid succession; his head was swimming as he looked from one place to the next—UNIT HQ, his own homeland of Scotland, and various planets—one of which had fields of red grass under a burnt-orange sky…

…As orange as the flames he had seen before.

That was when the vision of the flames returned in front of his eyes; once again, he could see the burning interior of the warehouse.

"Doctor!? DOCTOR!?" Jamie cried, sitting bolt upright as his room was now transformed into the warehouse. He leaped out of the bed, searching for the Doctor.

" _Jamie…"_

"Doctor!?"

The piper followed the sound of his voice, stopping in his tracks as he saw the Doctor cornered by approaching flames, his back pressed against a barred window. There was a haunting look of defeat on the Doctor's face.

" _Jamie… Zoe…"_ he said, shutting his eyes. _"I'm so sorry…"_

And it was then that Jamie realized that the Doctor had given up; he was out of tricks, and there was no escape for him after all.

"Doctor!" Jamie cried, reaching a hand out to him. "Doctor, I'm here! I'll save ye! Take my hand!"

The Doctor didn't seem to hear him; he continued to keep his eyes closed, still murmuring an apology.

" _Doctor_!" Jamie cried again.

"Jamie!" Zoe cried. "Jamie, wake up! _Jamie_!"

The next thing Jamie knew, Zoe was throwing the contents of one of the water bottles on his face. The piper gasped as the vision vanished; now, he was staring at Zoe, who had a mix of shock and horror on her face.

"You haven't been drinking the water!" she accused, shouting to make herself heard over the Cloister Bell. "The Doctor told you to stay hydrated!"

"I… I had to know what happened to him!" Jamie exclaimed. "The fire!"

"Drink!" she ordered, grabbing a second water bottle from the bedside table. "Oh, I _told_ the Doctor this was going to happen if he didn't tell you!"

Jamie took a drink of water, but paused.

"Tell me what?"

"That if you become too dehydrated, your cells will be overrun with the time energy and break down!"

"Oh, aye— _what_!?"

"Exactly!" Zoe exclaimed. "You need to drink up before the situation becomes irreversible!"

Jamie stared at the water bottle in his hand.

"But even if I stay hydrated, it won' help the Doctor."

"He'll find a way out of it, don't worry."

"No," Jamie said, sitting back down on the bed. "I had another vision, Zoe. The Doctor… He… He gave up. Or, he will."

" _What_?"

"The fire. He's going to be so trapped in that fire, that he won' be able to escape!" Jamie said. "I saw it, Zoe—I saw him… that look on his face…"

He buried his face in his hands as Zoe looked on, horrified.

"We've lost him."

* * *

The Doctor said nothing as the mercenaries continued to train their weapons at him; he merely glared at his lookalike with an unreadable expression.

"You do not seem surprised to see me here, Doctor," Salamander observed, smirking at him.

"Once I was able to put the pieces together, I realized it had to be you," the Doctor said, quietly, but with an edge to his voice. "I'm much more surprised to see you standing there with your sanity intact."

"You were expecting me to lose my mind?"

"My own people are sometimes driven mad by merely looking into the Time Vortex," the Doctor stated, forcefully reminded of what had happened to his friend, Koschei. "And you were lost within it—surrounded by it, unable to escape. In all honesty, I never held out much hope for you."

"And yet, here I am…"

"So it would seem. What was your secret?"

"The thought of vengeance is remarkable in keeping a man sane," Salamander said, his smirk turning to a frown. "And I have thought of it for a very, very long time, Doctor—every moment that I spent in that pit of time and space. My journey through the void ended with my mind completely intact as I arrived here."

"No doubt due to a weakening in the Vortex—a weakening that grew steadily worse, and that you further increased with that weather machine of yours!"

Salamander's smirk returned.

"I'm afraid you are mistaken, Doctor; my machine has stopped the drought from getting worse," he lied.

The Doctor scowled, his emotions finally betraying him.

"Not only are you the cause of this, you're putting the blame on an innocent young man!" he snapped. "Jamie has done nothing to cause the drought; he is a victim of the abnormalities of the Vortex, as well!"

"He has caused the abnormalities of the Vortex, and your desperate bid to try to put the blame off of your comrade is fooling nobody!"

"Will you stop this!?" the Doctor exclaimed. "Look at the state of the Vortex! You have to end this now and help me restore order to it before it's too late! If the damage is not repaired, the entirety of time and space will be destroyed!"

"All the more reason why that McCrimmon boy must be killed—to restore order!" Salamander barked back.

The Doctor moved towards him in fury; a flash of fear crossed Salamander's face, and several mercenaries grabbed him by the arms to restrain him.

"Have you heard nothing of what I've said!?" the Doctor exclaimed. "We are all in danger—all of us! This is no time to turn an innocent boy into your scapegoat—just because of some personal vendetta!"

Salamander leaned in towards the Doctor, his face an inch from his lookalike's.

" _That is the interesting thing about vendettas, Doctor_ ," he said, in Spanish. " _They are always personal_."

The Doctor glared back at him.

"You leave Jamie out of this," he ordered, quietly. "Your vendetta is against me—not him."

" _It would seem that the best way to get vengeance on you is through him_ ," Salamander said. " _It's your own fault for allowing your emotions to get the better of you. I did not get to where I was by being emotionally attached to others_."

"Well, that certainly explains how you managed to recover from Fariah's death so quickly…"

This time, it was Salamander's eyes that flashed with fury.

"Take him away!" he barked at the mercenaries. "I will question him myself, but, in the meantime, see if you can get him to reveal the boy's location!"

"There isn't time for this!" the Doctor yelled, as the mercenaries began to drag him away. "The entire continuum is about to collapse; you have to let me fix it first and save us all—then you can question me however long you like!"

"And pay no attention to his lies!" Salamander further ordered. "He is desperate enough to say anything to save himself!"

The Doctor fell silent as his struggles proved to be fruitless, despairing as he saw the open Vortex continuing to swirl in the sky.

* * *


	9. Questions, but No Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes: There are passing references to the novel The Indestructible Man and the Big Finish drama Prison in Space.

Zoe didn't know what to do. Her own upbringing made it very difficult for her to empathize with people, and though she was worried about the Doctor and Jamie, she was finding herself surprisingly unsettled by Jamie's misery.

"Jamie," she said, softly, raising the water bottle to his lips. "Jamie, you need to drink."

He halfheartedly took the water bottle and began to drink.

"What does it matter?" he said. "We've lost the Doctor."

"We haven't lost him yet!" she said. "There's still a chance that he can—"

Jamie slammed the water bottle down on the bedside table, startling her.

"I know what I saw!" he retorted. "And we both know that the Doctor is nae invincible! We nearly lost him once, remember!?"

"…How can I forget?" Zoe asked, quietly.

"And ye were nae there the time before that when I nearly lost him in that prison—ye were too busy being brainwashed!"

"Jamie…"

"I'm nae going to sit here while they burn him like a witch!" Jamie ranted.

"Oh, yes you are!" Zoe snapped.

Jamie stared at her, startled; he had never heard her raise her voice in such a manner. He quickly regained his poise, however.

"How dare ye—"

"How dare _you_ , Jamie McCrimmon, even _think_ of taking such a risk when the Doctor is worried sick about you—and for good reason! You're in as much danger as he is, and to throw your life away after he specifically told you to look after yourself is the _worst_ disservice you could possibly do to him!"

Jamie stared at her again as she caught her breath, looking just as startled as he did. In all of her years of life, she had never lost her temper before. She took a few deep breaths, calming down.

"Look. If the Doctor does find a way out of that warehouse and stops the problem with the Vortex… can you imagine how he would feel he if came back here to see that you had died because you didn't keep yourself hydrated like he begged you to? I hope you can imagine that, because I can't."

Jamie looked down.

"You mean so much to him, Jamie. Even I can see that, and I have trouble reading emotions. He talks about how he found you after he had changed and was still trying to find himself—you are so much of who he is. If he lost you… He would never be the same without you."

"And I would nae be the same withoot him!" Jamie said, tears in his eyes. "Ye saw what happened to me when we thought he was dead…"

"Yes, I did," Zoe said. "And that's why I'm going to save him."

"What…?"

"You saw him in the warehouse, which was on fire. And you saw him seemingly give up. But that doesn't mean that there still isn't a chance that someone could save him. And that someone may as well be me. I know the Doctor said that we're not supposed to leave the TARDIS, but if one of us has to, then it can only be me."

Jamie exhaled.

"Can ye do it?"

"I'll do my best," she promised. "But you have to promise to look after yourself."

"Aye, I will."

"Do you really mean that?" she asked. "Because you haven't done a very good job of it so far."

"Aye, I promise; no more trying to get visions. I'll keep drinking the water," Jamie said, and to illustrate his promise, he took a long drink from the water bottle.

"…I really shouldn't leave you," Zoe said, after a while. "But I'm going to. And you just remember what I said—about how the Doctor would feel if he saw you dead. You can't do that to him."

"I know."

Zoe hesitated, but as Jamie took another drink, she now left the room, headed down the corridor to the console room, and took one more look back before heading out the doors, locking them behind her.

The crowd had not returned, and no one had claimed the unused hovercrafts, either. It only took a moment for Zoe to figure out how to control one, and she was soon speeding towards the city.

Like the Doctor, Zoe was startled to see all of the wanted posters of Jamie displayed all over the city.

"They're blaming _him_?" she asked, shaking her head in confusion.

But what puzzled her more was the fact that while they listed the Doctor as one of Jamie's "accomplices," they hadn't mentioned her at all.

"Victoria Waterfield…?" she read.

Jamie and the Doctor had mentioned to her about Victoria, frequently. But that didn't explain why her name would be on the wanted poster instead of Zoe's, unless…

"…Whoever made these posters knew them," she murmured.

She knew that the Doctor would not have allowed Jamie's name dragged into this. So it had to be the work of someone who knew them… but who? Those Daleks that the Doctor had warned her about when she had stowed away on the TARDIS?

She was lost in her thoughts as she rode the hovercraft down the street—and then suddenly stopped as she saw a familiar face walking on the footpath.

"Doctor!" she exclaimed.

The man turned sharply to face her; the Doctor had seemingly changed his clothes and had parted his hair to the side—a disguise, no doubt, Zoe told herself.

She grinned as she leaped down from the hovercraft.

"There you are!" she said. "Oh, you have no idea how worried Jamie and I were—especially Jamie!"

The Doctor had a peculiar look on his face as he stared at her. She blinked at this reaction to her presence, but continued to walk with him down the footpath.

"Are you alright?" she asked, sensing that something was wrong.

The Doctor placed a hand to his neck, trying to clear his throat.

"Oh!" Zoe said. "The smoke from the fire bothered your throat? We'll head back to the TARDIS straight away and fix that—Jamie will be happy to see that you made it out after all. He kept saying that he had this vision of you giving up… Oh, but I told him you'd find a way out! Of course you would!"

The Doctor responded with a curt nod.

Zoe sighed, and now looked back to the swirling Vortex.

"Oh dear," she sighed. "I suppose we have to fix that before we return to the TARDIS?"

The Doctor nodded again.

"I see," she said. "Well, it's good that you've got this brilliant disguise—what with all those wanted posters. Why would anyone blame Jamie for this? …And why would they mention Victoria instead of me? Did they not see me running with you and Jamie? You know, I think it must be the work of someone who knew you back when Victoria was traveling with you. That's the only explanation!"

Again, the Doctor nodded. Zoe looked away for a moment, unable to shake the feeling that something was very wrong.

"I wish there was some way of letting Jamie know you were alright…" she said. "Maybe if we find a call box, we can call the phone on the TARDIS!"

Again, the Doctor indicated his throat.

"Well, I would do the talking, of course; I would just need the number from you," Zoe said. She looked up at him, and suppressed a chuckle. "You know, you do look strange with your hair parted like that. But rather dashing. You should have it like that more often, I think…"

The Doctor just gave her a blank look, and Zoe's smile faded.

"Well, while we're figuring out what to do," she said. "There's something else I wanted to talk to you about. I… I did something today I've never done before. I yelled—I was yelling at Jamie. Oh, I didn't mean to, but it just… happened. I don't understand; you keep saying that emotions are normal and healthy and good, but… How can that be good when it was my emotions that made me yell at Jamie?" She shook his head. "But I had to get some sense into him—he wanted to rush out here and save you, when he wasn't even looking after himself like we discussed… He wasn't staying hydrated, and you said that his cells would break down if he didn't…"

The Doctor's eyes suddenly flashed, but Zoe was too absorbed in her own thoughts to notice.

"…So I yelled at him, saying that you would be devastated if anything happened to him. And of course, you would be, wouldn't you?"

The corners of the Doctor's mouth twitched as she looked back up at him. And Zoe suddenly felt uncomfortable; she wasn't good at reading emotions, but it seemed that he had been trying to suppress… a smile? No, that couldn't be! The Doctor wouldn't have found the prospect of Jamie's death as anything to smile at!

But her fears were quickly dispelled as the Doctor nodded again, and she sighed once more.

"There's something else I feel right now, Doctor," she said. "Scared. I hope we can solve the problem with the Vortex. Otherwise, saving you and keeping Jamie hydrated won't matter, will it? I'm… afraid."

The Doctor responded by placing a hand on her shoulder—in a rather tight grip. Zoe smiled at first, but then the smile was quickly wiped from her face.

The hand on her shoulder was warm—too warm.

 _Thirty-seven degrees Celsius_ , she mentally realized. Slowly, she placed her own hand over the "Doctor's," adjusting her fingers so that she could feel his wrist for a pulse. … _And only one heart_ …

Her own heart started hammering in her chest now. Once again, she was scared, but for a different reason; whoever it was walking next to her was human—and, therefore, most certainly _not_ the Doctor.


	10. Pennies for the Vendor

Zoe attempted to calm down; she didn't want whoever this was to know that she had realized he wasn't the Doctor. Unfortunately, her trembling was noticeable; the man's grip on her shoulder tightened further.

"Doctor…" she said, trying to keep her voice calm. "Doctor, you're hurting me. Can you let go, please?"

"So sorry, Señorita," the man said, softly. "But I cannot release you now. You see, your words have proven to me that you are in league with a wanted man."

"Who are you!?" Zoe demanded, dropping the facade. "What have you done with the Doctor!?"

"The Doctor is undergoing interrogation; he will eventually tell us where the McCrimmon boy is hiding," Salamander said. "As will you."

Zoe didn't even bother giving him a reply; this was not the time for words. She had to get away before he called for reinforcements. She quickly raised her other hand, placing it beside her first hand, which was still on Salamander's wrist, and proceeded to judo-flip him over her shoulder, just as she had done to the Karkus.

Salamander let out an exclamation as he was sent flying over Zoe's shoulder. By the time he had looked up, she had gone. Cursing, he looked into the nearest alley, but she was nowhere in sight.

Never mind, then. That fact that he knew it was her and not Victoria would be enough to convince the Doctor that he had her captured. And he had best make the Doctor talk before she alerted Jamie and had him hide.

Salamander stalked off, not noticing the short figure peering out from behind a trash can. Zoe's heart was still hammering in her chest, but she knew that she had to keep track of where Salamander was going—undoubtedly, he would lead her to the Doctor.

She kept her distance, mingling with the crowd on the footpaths as Salamander continued on his way, hoping that it wouldn't be too late—for the Doctor, and for the Time Vortex.

Jamie was still sitting on his bed, slowly drinking another bottle of water, having finished the first one.

He was still worried—how could he not be? The Doctor was probably in that burning warehouse right now, and the angry crowd would likely be outside, making sure that no one could get through to rescue him. How would Zoe even stand a chance at getting past them, let alone saving the Doctor?

He trembled as he continued to drink, the thought of losing both of them now beginning to creep into his head.

How could they expect him to just sit here, drinking water, and expect them both to be danger? Just because the Doctor was worried about him? What about Jamie's worries? Did they mean nothing?

The piper froze, memories coming to his mind, unbidden; twice, he had thought the Doctor to be dead, and he remembered both times all too well—the Doctor's closed eyes, the still chest, and the two hearts that were not beating…

And then something snapped in the piper's heart. He was a survivor of the Battle of Culloden, not a little child that needed to be fussed over and looked after. If the Doctor was going to worry over him for going out there and doing something, then let him worry. As far as Jamie was concerned, it would serve him right—to know what it felt like… to know what Jamie had gone through…

With a roll of his eyes, though, he grudgingly took a few of the water bottles with him as he headed to the console room. Quickly realizing that he had nothing to carry them in, he took the first aid kit and placed it and the bottles in a satchel that had been hanging on a chair and headed for the TARDIS's main doors.

The TARDIS let out a screech of protest over the still-tolling Cloister Bell as Jamie opened the doors. The piper had a strong feeling that if the TARDIS hadn't been weakened by the problems with the Vortex, the doors would not have opened for him. As it was, all the TARDIS could do was protest.

"I have to help him," he said, not sure why he was addressing the ship. "Don' ye understand? If he is to come back here and fix the Vortex, he needs to be saved. And I need to give Zoe all the help she can."

There was no reply, and Jamie now stepped outside, locking the doors behind him. He could still hear the Cloister Bell tolling behind the doors, but now looked towards the hovercrafts.

He scratched his head, taking a moment to figure out how to work the hovercraft. He was a quick learner, however, and he took a few more swigs of one of the water bottles as he headed towards the city, as well.

The sight of the wanted posters, however, had an immediate effect on him when he finally started taking notice of them—indeed, he crashed his hovercraft into a garbage receptacle and was sent tumbling across the footpath.

The satchel he had been carrying opened as he landed, and his water bottles fell from it, rolling down the footpath. He made a grab for them, but passersby saw the precious water bottles, and members of the crowd turned into petty thieves and yanked them out of his reach, claiming the bottles for themselves as they ran off, leaving the gobsmacked piper behind on the pavement.

"No!" he exclaimed. "Ye don' understand—I need to stay hydrated…"

He trailed off, his face paling as people turned to stare at him as he spoke—and less than three feet away on the wall was one of the wanted posters.

He didn't stop to think. He ran; it took the people nearby a few moments to put two and two together, but some of them chased after Jamie as he bolted into an alley, desperately holding onto the satchel with the first aid kit before he lost that, too.

Adrenaline was keeping him going now in his weakened condition, and as he reached a fence that blocked the way ahead, the piper leaped onto the top of another trash receptacle and leaped over the fence.

He let out a grunt as he landed, but he got to his feet and kept running. He had to find the Doctor; that was all that mattered—it mattered more than the fact that his sudden burst of athletics was causing him to sweat.

"I'm innocent…!" he gasped, knowing that it was futile to try to explain it. "Please, believe me… I just want to save the Doctor…"

But even that seemed impossible now—soon, Jamie wouldn't even be able to save himself.

For the Doctor, at that present moment, ignorance was, truly, bliss. Salamander's mercenaries had taken him to an abandoned warehouse. Alarm bells quickly went off in the Doctor's head; he knew this would end in flames.

What he didn't know was that Zoe was on her way here, and that Jamie was being pursued to the brink of exhaustion by a small crowd.

He was, however, concerned with the state of the Vortex. He could only hope that he could escape the inevitable fire with enough time to spare. He sighed as the mercenaries handcuffed him to a support beam.

They questioned him. They demanded answers from him. Then, they began to threaten him; one of them presented the Time Lord with a left hook that left stars in his vision—and the genuine malice that he felt behind the strike startled him. These people truly believed that Salamander was their benefactor, just as 2018 Earth had—and they also blindly believed that Jamie was a villain in all of this—that he had orchestrated this, and deserved to be punished for his "crime."

"He's innocent in all of this!" the Doctor exclaimed. "For pity's sake, I will tell you what happened! The energy from the Time Vortex accidentally entered his body and displaced some of the water in his cells! It was an accident—a completely unintentional phenomenon that I am trying to find a resolution to!"

"There is no time to find a resolution, Doctor," Salamander said, as he entered the warehouse in time to hear him.

"I beg your pardon?" the Doctor thought, noting that his lookalike seemed to have a few bruises.

"The situation has become most dire, has it not?" Salamander asked. "Even if the McCrimmon boy ended up this way accidentally, the fact remains that he is still a danger to the Time Vortex—and every living thing across the space-time continuum."

"He is not the cause of this!" the Doctor insisted. "He is a victim—more of a victim than all of you are!"

"Whether he is a victim or, as I suspect, the instigator (though you keep denying it), he has become an anomaly—this energy is running through him, and it does not belong in him!" Salamander barked. "He has become a freak of nature, Doctor! He has no place amongst any of us!"

"I never wanted him to be amongst you!" the Doctor responded. "His place is with me—he'll always have a place with me!"

"I'm afraid not, Doctor."

"…Just what do you mean by that?" the Gallifreyan asked, already knowing—and dreading—the answer.

"I mean, Doctor, that the survival of the space-time continuum—and the Time Vortex—is essential. It is more essential than the life of one foolish boy. I told you before, Doctor, when I had you arrested—he must be killed to restore order."

"And I told you, you can't do that to him!" the Doctor snapped.

"Can't I, Doctor?" Salamander asked. "You seem to forget something—I have captured you before you could impersonate me again. And my word is law. Your other accomplice found that out. Pity Señorita Waterfield isn't traveling with you anymore, but you seem to have found a replacement."

The Doctor's face paled. The bruises… Zoe wouldn't have surrendered without a fight…

"Yes, Doctor, I found your pixie-haired accomplice; she thought I was you—in disguise," Salamander said. "You should have told her about me, Doctor. But that's irrelevant now. I wonder… who will crack first—you, or her?"

"I told them both to stay safe…"

"Ah, yes, in that blasted box of yours, no doubt…" Salamander said, lighting a cigarette and nonchalantly blowing the smoke in the Doctor's face. "But if this _niña_ disobeyed you, then McCrimmon is sure to have, too, huh?"

The Doctor paled further.

"I thought as much," Salamander said, smirking. He turned to the nearest mercenary. "Have the wanted posters altered, and send out fresh news bulletins—McCrimmon is to be killed on sight."


	11. Such Anxious Men

"You can't do that!" the Doctor exclaimed, pulling uselessly against the handcuffs that held him to the support beam.

"I have done it, Doctor," Salamander said. "I am thinking about the safety of those in Neo Serenity—those I am responsible for. This, in turn, will spare the countless lives across the galaxy. You said yourself the damage would destroy everything."

"But Jamie is innocent!"

"Lies!" Salamander barked.

The Doctor now glared daggers at Salamander.

"This is not the time to argue as to who is lying because you and I are the only ones who know the truth, and the one of us who is in the position to speak the truth has chosen not to," he said, coldly. "But I will tell you this. You are already treading on dangerous territory by refusing to allow me to repair the Vortex. But if _any_ harm befalls Jamie, the danger you will face will be unimaginable."

The smirk was wiped from Salamander's face.

"I believe you are not bluffing, Doctor."

"I'm glad, because I most certainly am not."

" _Si_. You are a danger to me," Salamander continued. He flicked his cigarette lighter on. "And, so, I cannot allow you to remain."

The Doctor's expression didn't change; it was inevitable. At least he didn't have to wait for it any longer…

"Do you know who owns this warehouse, Doctor?" Salamander asked. "It belongs to a paper mill. You see the reams of paper all around you, do you not? Highly flammable. And the pixie-haired girl mentioned something about McCrimmon foreseeing you caught in a fire. …Who am I to deny fate?"

He snapped his fingers and motioned for his mercenaries to leave the warehouse; they obeyed.

"Do you have anything to say, Doctor?"

"Only that you have absolutely no idea as to what you are dealing with. We may look the same, but I can assure you that I have walked through the universe of time and space for 450 years. Your existence is nothing more than a bubble on a needle." His eyes narrowed. "And _I_ am that needle, Salamander."

"That is why I am destroying the needle," Salamander said. "And then, I will have the best locksmiths break into that infernal box of yours. If McCrimmon is in there, we'll drag him out by force. If he is already in the city, then… he is as good as dead. But I relish the chance of seeing him first—to tell him of how you burned."

"I have given you my warning," the Doctor said.

Salamander glanced at him, a part of him believing that the Doctor would, indeed, find a way out of this and wreak vengeance upon him.

"What are you, Doctor?" he asked. "You mentioned to me earlier about 'your people,' and that girl checked my pulse to see if I was you."

"You're scared," the Doctor observed. "As a bubble should be of a needle."

Salamander scowled. In one swift motion, he released one of the Doctor's hands, now handcuffing that hand to a piece of machinery, making sure that he could not put his hands together.

"It matters not," he hissed. "You will soon be dead!"

"Will I?"

Instead of a response, Salamander merely held the lighter to the nearest shelf of paper reams until they ignited. With one final glare at the Doctor, he turned and exited the warehouse. The Doctor could see him through a small mail slot opening in the door as he pressed a code on an electronic lock system. The door locked, and Salamander left, leaving the Doctor alone with the growing flames.

The first thing the Doctor did was to swing around the support beam to try to put as much distance between himself and the flames as possible, regardless of how futile it was with his other arm chained to the machine. He was now in front of one of the barred windows.

"Right, then…" he said. "All I need to do is use my sonic screwdriver, and…"

He trailed off, suddenly realizing that with both of his hands handcuffed to the support beam, he couldn't reach his pockets.

"Oh… Oh, crumbs…"

He glanced back at the flames, which were rapidly spreading. Realizing that there was no way out other than to wait and regenerate, he huddled against the beam, his thoughts turning to Jamie and Zoe. He could only hope that this would all happen quickly enough to escape from this place, rescue Zoe, and find Jamie before he was found. As much as he wanted to believe that Jamie was safe in the TARDIS (knowing that not even the best locksmiths would be able to get past those doors), he knew that the Scot would have gone to find him—save him from the fire.

"Please, Jamie…" he said, softly. "Please, stay hidden. Stay hydrated."

He looked out the window as he heard a voice over a loudspeaker system.

" _By orders of our leader Salamander, the wanted man, James McCrimmon, is a dangerous man and is to be killed on sight. We repeat, by orders of our leader Salamander_ …"

The Doctor turned his face away, staring blankly at the flames.

"Jamie…"

He was backed up against the window. Jamie was in danger, and Zoe was captured—goodness knows what they'd do to her! And it was all because they had been worried about him…

He shut his eyes in despair.

"Jamie… Zoe… I'm so sorry…"

He was vaguely aware of the electronic lock unlocking, but both of his hearts skipped a beat as he heard a familiar voice—

"Doctor!"

"Zoe!?" he exclaimed, hardly daring to believe that she was standing in the doorway of the warehouse, a look of unbridled horror on her features. "Zoe, run! Get out of here!"

"Not without you!" she cried, running over to him.

"Zoe, no!" the Doctor cried; the flames were already nearing him, but the astrophysicist paid him no heed, attempting to pick the lock on the handcuffs. "No, no, no! Use the sonic screwdriver, at least! It's it my suitjacket pocket; I can't reach it!"

Zoe wasted no time; she freed his right hand, and then his left, explaining quickly as she worked.

"I followed that horrible man here; I knew he'd lead me right to you and show me the code…!" She trailed off. "It _is_ you, isn't it? Oh, Doctor, forgive me, but—"

"Yes, yes, I know…" the Doctor said, as she took his pulse and sighed in relief to feel the beat of two hearts. "Now let's get out of here—we have to find Jamie!"

"Yes, I heard that announcement," she said, as they headed for the door. "So, Salamander is his name…"

"Yes, but, tell me, Zoe—how did you escape from him?"

"Escape? He never captured me—oh!"

She suddenly gasped as she and the Doctor found the door to the warehouse blocked by Salamander.

"He has now," the cruel man smirked, closing and locking the warehouse door.

"No!" the Doctor cried, but the lock had already re-sealed.

"Did you honestly think, Señorita, that I did not notice you following me?" Salamander asked, leering at them through the mail slot opening. "You can burn with him. I'll see to it that McCrimmon joins you in the hereafter soon enough."

"Salamander!" the Doctor roared. " _SALAMANDER_!"

With a final smirk, Salamander turned and left, his mercenaries following him.

"We're truly alone this time," Zoe said, after they had gone. "Quickly, Doctor—use the sonic screwdriver; we can—"

"No…" the Doctor said, despairing again. "The sonic won't work; the lock is on the outside!"

He and Zoe glanced back at the approaching flames.

"But you have a plan, don't you?" she asked, her voice pleading with him. "The walls are only fiberglass…" She trailed off, accepting the futility of their situation.

The Doctor now hugged her close in a protective embrace as they sunk to the ground, trying to avoid inhaling the smoke. This… this was the worst possible thing to happen now. He would merely regenerate… but Zoe…

"Oh, Zoe, forgive me. You were safer on the Wheel," he said, quietly. "I should've insisted upon you going back…"

"Please don't blame yourself, Doctor," she said, shutting her eyes. "I wanted to travel with you. I enjoyed it. I… I was happy."

"So was I, Zoe. So was I."

He continued to hold her close, hoping that by some miracle, he'd take the worst of the flames and use his regeneration energy to break down the door before Zoe succumbed to the fire and smoke—and that, somehow, Jamie would be safe.

* * *

It transpired, of course, that Jamie was not safe. However, running for his life was something he had become accustomed to—at Culloden, and against the various beasties he encountered.

What he wasn't used to, however, was his body getting weaker and weaker as he lost more water. Soon, he was seeing visions as he ran—Yetis, Cybermen… strange plastic men with cannons in their hands… And fire… So much fire…

Adrenaline kept him going; his heart was hammering in his chest as he ducked through alleys and clambered over fences.

And that was when he heard the announcement—

" _By orders of our leader Salamander, the wanted man, James McCrimmon, is a dangerous man and is to be killed on sight._ "

"Salamander…?"

It made sense now—it made such horrible, horrible sense. That was why the crowd hated them so much—Salamander had been sure to turn everyone against them…

Anger now drove the piper as he continued to flee. He wasn't sure of how much time had passed; all he knew was that he was in a maze of back alleys when he realized that he was no longer pursued.

Either he had lost them, or they were regrouping to go after him with weapons. Regardless, the Scot had a moment to catch his breath.

He searched in vain for a spare water bottle in his satchel, but they had all gone—taken when he had fallen. He looked up to the sky in despair… and stared in horror as he saw a rising cloud of smoke.

"Doctor…!"

There was no time for him to catch his breath after all; ignoring the pain in his side, the piper took off running again, clambering over more fences to take the most direct route to the source of the smoke.

He saw the warehouse, flames and smoke pouring from it. A squeak left his lips as he reached the door, pounding on it. He tried to shout—to call out to the Doctor, but his voice had weakened from exhaustion.

But that when a familiar pair of eyes appeared from behind the mail slot, widening as they beheld him.

" _Jamie_!?"

For a moment, they stared at each other through the mail slot, a rush of joy now mingling with their muddled emotions. Then, a second set of eyes appeared, pushing the Doctor's out of the way.

"Jamie, the keypad!" Zoe exclaimed. "If you put the code in, the door will open—now, listen carefully!"

She relayed the code, and Jamie ignored the growing darkness clouding his mind as he punched the numbers in. At last, the door unlocked, the piper stumbled back as it opened, allowing the Doctor and Zoe out.

"Oh, well done, Jamie! You were—oh, my word!"

The expression of joy on the Doctor's face was quickly replaced by one of horror as he saw the piper's condition.

But Jamie just stared at him in relief. The Doctor and Zoe were safe! And now, he would be too—the Doctor would find a way! And so, with that in mind, the Scot allowed the darkness to take over as he fell forward into the Doctor's arms, a smile on his face at last.


	12. Salvation's Yours for Just a Time

Salamander stood outside the TARDIS as his team of mercenaries and locksmiths worked on the lock of the TARDIS—or attempted to.

None of their lock picks worked, and any attempts to use clay to make an impression of the lock also failed.

"You are all useless!" Salamander hissed at the team. "Why do I pay you, I wonder!? It is a simple lock on a battered old police box!"

He struck a fist against the TARDIS's door and then immediately stepped back from it, alarmed.

He had _felt_ something—a feeling of… anger? Hatred? When he had first entered the box during his last encounter with the Doctor and had been taking in the unbelievably spacious interior, he had thought he had felt the same thing, but had dismissed it due to his own battered state at the time.

But there was no mistaking it now; this battered box was somehow alive—and angry with him.

"Mr. Salamander?" one of the men asked. "What are we supposed to do?"

Salamander didn't reply; he was still staring at the TARDIS; the twinge of fear he had been trying to ignore was now burrowing deeper into his mind.

And now the Doctor's words were echoing in his consciousness—

" _Your existence is nothing more than a bubble on a needle. And_ I _am that needle, Salamander_."

"Mr. Salamander?"

He snapped out of his daze and turned to the mercenary.

"What?" he snapped.

"What do you wish for us to do?"

Salamander glanced back at the TARDIS, and then glanced at the useless lock picks and clay.

"We are going back to the warehouse," he said. "Call the fire brigade, but tell them to use only a limited amount of water."

"Sir?"

"We need to get a needle—I mean, a key. And that Doctor will have it." He glared at the men. " _Move_!"

* * *

The TARDIS keys—and the ones carrying them—were blocks away from the warehouse by this time, however. It wasn't an easy task, but the Doctor had managed to reach a relatively safe place in the kitchen of an old, bearded-up restaurant; using the sonic screwdriver on the back door allowed them entry, and the fact that the building had seemed unused for years led the Doctor to hope that they would not be tracked here.

The entire way here, the Doctor had carried the unconscious piper in his arms; the tension of the escape masked the Time Lord's apprehension, but now that they were safe, the lines of worry on his face deepened with every passing moment.

"Is he going to be alright?" Zoe whispered.

But the Doctor didn't answer; Zoe watched him as he cradled Jamie in one arm, gently placing his hand on the side of the piper's face. Carefully, he opened one of Jamie's eyelids.

"Oh, no…" he whispered, exhaling sharply.

"Doctor? Are we too late?"

To her surprise, the Doctor then placed his forehead against Jamie's, and his eyes widened.

"We're in time—but only just!" the Doctor declared. "He needs water—immediately, before he slips away."

"Oh…!" Zoe gasped, looking around. She ran over to the sink and turned on the faucet, but let out a little cry of despair as nothing poured from it.

"Oh, they shut the water off—of course they would!"

The Doctor's face fell, but he finally noticed the satchel that Jamie had been carrying. He immediately seized it, letting out a laugh of relief as he found the first aid kit inside.

"Well, this will do for a start!"

"I don't understand…" Zoe said.

"You will—open that kit and find me the pouch of electrolyte liquid!"

And the astrophysicist's eyes widened in understanding. Quickly, she opened the kit and found the pouch, opening it and handing it to the Doctor. The Doctor held the pouch up to Jamie's lips, but the piper didn't drink.

"Jamie…" the Doctor pleaded. "You must drink—it's the only thing that will save you now!"

"It's no use, Doctor; he's not conscious enough!" Zoe said. "We'd have to give it to him intravenously!"

"We don't have the equipment for that!" the Doctor said, handing the pouch back to Zoe. "Hold that up to his lips!"

She obeyed, and stared as the Doctor placed his forehead against Jamie's again, shutting his eyes, as though he was concentrating. To her astonishment, Jamie stirred slightly, and began to drink.

This continued for several tense minutes until he had drank the contents of the pouch, and then fell back, unresponsive, in the Doctor's arms. The Doctor broke the forehead-to-forehead contact, sighing.

"What was that, Doctor?" Zoe said. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say…"

"You would say what, Zoe?"

"Well…" she said. "I know it can't be possible, but it was as though you were transmitting your thoughts to him—forcing him to drink."

"That's exactly what I did, Zoe."

Zoe stared at him, stunned.

" _How_ …?"

"My people are touch-telepaths," the Doctor explained, still gently supporting Jamie with his arm. "We can read the thought patterns of other lifeforms through physical contact."

"So that's how you knew we weren't too late—you could still read Jamie's thought patterns!"

Exactly. And not only that, we can manipulate the thought patterns of other beings, and, of course, once you manipulate the mind, you can manipulate them to do anything—including having them drink a liquid that will save their lives."

"If you could do that all along, why didn't you manipulate Jamie's thought patterns so that he wouldn't leave the TARDIS and stay hydrated?" Zoe asked. "You would have had an easy way keep him safe!"

"It's not something I enjoy doing, Zoe. You and Jamie both mean very much to me, and just the thought of trying to control your minds turns my stomach. How could I disrespect the both of you in such a manner? You wouldn't be my companions; you'd be my puppets! …I showed you what happened between Jamie and myself when we faced the Daleks, through thought projection, remember? I didn't even try to control his mind, but I still manipulated him, and it very nearly ruined things beyond repair! Losing Jamie's trust was… unbearable."

"I think I understand," Zoe said. "Anything we do, you want it to be because it's our choice."

"Exactly. You both have your own minds, and that is just one of the things that makes you both unique. And any attempt from me to try to change that—or change you—would be unthinkable. I care about you two far too much for that. …But I had to save Jamie's life; I can only hope he forgives me for temporarily manipulating his thought patterns, even if it was for this purpose."

"I'm sure he will," Zoe said. "He's awfully fond of you—all he could talk about was wanting to save you. And, he did…"

"Yes. Yes, he did…"

"…I yelled at him."

"Sorry?"

"When he kept insisting that he wanted to go out and save you, without any regard for his own safety, I got so frustrated, and I yelled at him. I didn't mean to…" She winced. "And I accidentally told that Salamander fellow all about it. I'm so sorry, Doctor; I thought he was you in disguise!"

"It's an easy mistake to make, Zoe."

"Why does he hate you and Jamie so much? And Victoria?"

"It'd take too long to explain…"

"Could you tell me with touch telepathy?"

"I believe I could."

She leaned forward, allowing him to press his forehead against hers. In a span of seconds, he transmitted everything she needed to know—about Astrid and Giles Kent, about how he had impersonated Salamander, and about their confrontation in the TARDIS.

He broke contact again, and she gave a nod.

"It certainly all makes sense now," she agreed. "And it's rather intriguing. Here you are, a pikilothermic, lifeform with a binary vascular system from another planet, and yet, you have the exact same facial features as one particular human being. …You're not even a mammal, are you, Doctor?"

"Not even remotely."

"I thought as much…" Zoe said. "I just wish certain other things made sense, too."

"Like what?"

"Why I yelled at Jamie. And why it bothers me that I did."

"Oh, Zoe, it's perfectly normal—"

He immediately stopped in midsentence as Jamie quietly mumbled something. Even Zoe's thoughts were diverted.

"He's coming around!" she whispered.

"Yes, but he'll still be quite weak," the Doctor said. "One packet of electrolyte liquid isn't enough. Jamie? Jamie, my boy, do you hear me?"

The piper opened his eyes now, and suddenly trembled, as though afraid.

"S… Sal…" he stammered.

"Oh, I see…" the Doctor said. He gave Jamie a reassuring smile and, to Zoe's surprise, proceeded to whistle "shave and a haircut."

The piper's trembling ceased, joy slightly lighting up his haggard features. He attempted to whistle "two bits" in response, but his parched lips failed him.

The Doctor's hearts both gave a twinge upon seeing the failed attempt at a response.

"It's alright, Jamie. You need to conserve your strength. We very nearly lost you—and after you saved the both of us! When you're better, rest assured, I will give you the proper chiding you deserve!" He paused, but then continued. "I had to control your thought patterns for a moment to make sure that you would drink; I am sorry…"

But Jamie gave a nod and a weak smile.

"There's another pouch of electrolyte liquid in here, Doctor!" Zoe exclaimed, after searching through the first aid kit.

"Yes, good, that will also serve as a very temporary solution," he said. "But Jamie needs water, and lots of it. In the condition he's in, he needs to be constantly drinking in order to prevent any damage to his cells!"

"But we don't have any water!" Zoe said.

"Then we'll just have to find some water from elsewhere!" the Doctor said.

"How?" Zoe asked. "We can't exactly go around and beg for it; once Salamander figures out that we escaped the fire, there'll be wanted posters of us next!"

"Yes, yes; that's true. We shall have to come up with some clever idea…"

"But there isn't time for that!" Zoe reminded him. "Or have you forgotten about the Vortex?"

"…Oh, my word…"

"You _did_ forget!"

"Well, I had other things to think about!" the Doctor said. "Right… Water for Jamie, and then repair the Vortex…"

"Do you have enough time to do both of those things?" Zoe asked, quietly. "How much longer will the Vortex stay before the space-time continuum collapses?"

"…To tell you the truth, Zoe, I don't know."

"Well, you know what that means don't you?" she said. "If you go looking for water for Jamie, you may run out of time to repair the Vortex. And if you go repair the Vortex first… Jamie will run out of time."

The reality of the situation came crashing down upon the Doctor; he was going to have to make a very difficult decision—and quickly.


	13. Never Know Each Other

The Doctor's mind raced; he had very little time to make his decision—dare he risk the entire space-time continuum for the sake of one piper?

In the back of his mind, he could hear the voices of his former classmates—

" _Thete, you fool_ …" Ushas snarled.

" _He is an insignificant primitive_ ," Magnus said, dismissively.

" _Let the boy die_ ," Koschei—no, the Master—ordered.

A tug on his sleeve brought the Doctor back to the present, and he glanced down at Jamie, who was looking up at him.

"Vortex…" he squeaked.

A wan smile crossed the Doctor's face, and he gently removed his suitjacket and placed it under Jamie's head to serve as a pillow as he gently placed him on the floor.

"Zoe," he said. "Make sure Jamie drinks that other pouch of electrolyte liquid. I'll be back as soon as I can with some water."

Zoe stared at him in amazement.

"You mean…?"

"I'm confident that the Vortex can hold on for a little while longer," he said. "It's done very well so far."

"I suppose…" she said. "But how will you find the water in the first place? Aside from the fact that we're all going to be wanted, people would probably not be generous enough to give water to a complete stranger."

"Yes… Yes, I am aware of that," the Doctor said. "But I happen to know one place where there would be quite a bit of water stored away."

"Where's that?"

"Salamander's building."

Zoe's mouth fell open.

"You're mad!"

"Trust me, Zoe; Salamander is the kind of man who will ensure that he is well taken care of in the event of a crisis. There will be water there."

"How do you even hope to expect to get anywhere near it without being arrested!?" she exclaimed.

Wordlessly, the Doctor pulled a comb from his trouser pocket and bean to part his hair to the side. Zoe placed her hands on the sides of her face, staring at him, speechlessly, as he drew himself to his full height.

"You see, Señorita?" he said, his voice an echo of Salamander's. "No one would dare lay a hand on their dear leader!"

"I still say you're mad!" Zoe retorted. "Your clothes are all tattered and dirty—I think there are even a couple of scorch marks!"

"The work of assassins!" the Doctor quipped, still in character. "I narrowly escaped with my life!"

Zoe continued to stare at him, shaking her head, slowly.

"Oh, I hope you know what you're doing…" she said, at last.

The Doctor dropped the charade, glancing back at the astrophysicist with his usual warm eyes.

"So do I, Zoe. So do I." He turned to Jamie. "Now, then, Jamie… I want you to mind what Zoe tells you. Drink the electrolyte liquid, and then I want you to stay awake—just lie still, but remain awake. Can you do that for me, Jamie?"

The piper gave a nod, but then mouthed two words.

"Be careful?" the Doctor repeated. "Oh, of course, Jamie! Aren't I always?"

Jamie gave him a long stare, and, behind him, he heard Zoe let out a "Ha!"

"…On second thoughts, don't answer that," he added, hastily. "Right, then. I'll be off. You should be safe here."

He opened the back door slightly, and after making sure that the coast was clear, darted off into the now-darkened alley, grateful that the local star had set. He could feel the eyes of his companions on him as he left, until the door closed behind him.

Zoe exhaled. She wasn't sure why she was nervous; the Doctor knew more about this situation than she did.

"It's going to be fine," she said aloud, both for Jamie's benefit and her own. "The Doctor must have used some intricate calculation method to determine that there was time for him to get the water. And I know he'll do whatever he has to in order to get the water. He knows what's at risk here…"

"Me," Jamie croaked. "He's…"

"Shh. Jamie, he told you to lie still," Zoe said, as she took the other packet of electrolyte liquid.

"Putting himself… in danger… because of me…"

"Now that's some talk coming from someone who didn't listen to us and got dehydrated trying to save us," the astrophysicist tutted.

Jamie winced and pointed at his satchel.

"Had… water…"

"Well, where is it!?"

"Stolen…"

Zoe stared at him.

"Someone stole the water you had brought?" she asked. "If that's the case, and they're really that desperate, then this drought is even worse than we first thought. No wonder Salamander is so desperate to put the blame on you…"

Shaking her head, she gently placed a hand beneath Jamie's head and lifted him slightly, placing the packet of electrolyte liquid to his lips. He drank from it, greedily, leaving the both of them wondering when the Doctor would return.

* * *

Salamander and his team had arrived at the still-ablaze warehouse. He had been forced to call the fire brigade, but with limited water resources, there was only so much that they could do to combat the blaze.

"Get the Doctor from inside," Salamander ordered, after giving them the code to the door. "You can leave the traitorous girl there, but get the Doctor out!"

The firemen nodded in understanding, but once the door was opened, they stood there, perplexed, not venturing any further.

"Well!?" Salamander barked.

"There is no one inside, Mr. Salamander!" one of them said.

To the fireman's astonishment, Salamander paled, taking a step back from the warehouse; the Doctor's warning once again echoed through his mind.

"Mr. Salamander, what should we do?" a second fireman asked.

Salamander didn't answer; he turned around and began to walk away.

"Mr. Salamander?"

"Do what you wish!" Salamander snapped. "Extinguish it, or let it burn! I could care less either way!"

"Mr. Salamander?" one of the mercenaries asked. "Where are you going, Sir?"

"To my office!" he snarled. "I need someplace where I can think in peace—somewhere far from that maddening Doctor!"

With that, he departed, leaving his baffled entourage behind.


	14. They Walk the Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes: There's a quick reference to the DW novel The Final Sanction.

The Doctor strode forward determinedly as he approached the building in the heart of Salamander Square, grateful that his doppelganger had an ego large enough to make things simple for him. Passersby had been staring at him—no doubt due to the condition of his clothes—but the fierce look in his eyes had been enough to dissuade anyone from asking questions.

A quick glance at the board listing the offices and occupants told him where to go. After a quick ride in the lift, he approached the door of Salamander's office suite and practically threw the door open, nearly taking it off of its hinges.

The secretary sitting at the desk gave a start.

"Mr. Salamander!? What _happened_ —?"

"A brazen assassination attempt is what happened!" the Doctor barked, his impression flawless.

"Was it those fugitives, Mr. Salamander?" the secretary asked. "Where are they? Shall I call for reinforcements—?"

"If I knew where they were, do you not think I would have already called for reinforcements to go after them, imbecile!?" he retorted. "I wish to be left alone—leave me in peace!"

"…Yes, Sir…" the secretary said, trailing off as the Doctor headed into the inner office without a word.

The Doctor exhaled once he was alone and inside, silently congratulating himself on his successful bluff.

"Right, then…" he murmured. "Water. Where would he keep it?"

His gaze traveled to the desk, which held several locked drawers. The Doctor tutted as he glanced at the wooden structure—the sonic screwdriver would be little use here. Nevertheless, he had other tricks for lockpicking, one of which was a hairpin that had once belonged to Susan—during a very brief phase in which she had let her hair grow. This method took longer than the sonic, but it was by no means any less reliable.

Within minutes, the Doctor had broken into several of the drawers; to his delight, there were plenty of bottles of water stored away inside of them.

"Oh, yes, that will do very nicely," he said, slipping several of the water bottles into his bigger-on-the-inside pockets. "This will be more than enough to get Jamie back up on his feet and should last until we've corrected the problem with the Vortex…"

The Doctor sighed to himself; his decision to retrieve the water for Jamie rather than deal with the Vortex first had been made completely on an emotional level, contrary to what Zoe had thought. The thought of the entire space-time continuum collapsing was, indeed, a horrifying thought—but so was the idea of Jamie McCrimmon dying. Had the other Time Lords known of what he had done, he would have been punished for making a foolish decision in their eyes. But he had grown too fond of the little piper to allow anything to happen to him—or to Zoe. It was a weakness, he knew—he had once been the one to tell Barbara that she couldn't change history, and yet, not too long ago, he had ignored his own advice and had risked changing a Fixed Point to ensure Jamie and Zoe's safety. His previous self would have been appalled by his actions, but his regeneration had changed him into someone far too dependent on those funny, little humans he had picked up along the way.

"I suppose, one day, they'll be the end of me," he sighed, but his train of thought was soon diverted as he removed a couple more bottles of water and saw a parcel hidden in the back of the drawer. "Hello, what's this…?"

He pulled the parcel out, first reading the handwritten note that had been sent with it; the note had already been opened, even though the parcel had not.

_Salamander—_

_Per your request, the item you desired. Please appreciate the time and effort it took to obtain it in the intergalactic black market; I thank you for your advanced payment, but require more on account of unforeseen costs._

_Regards,_

_S. Glitz_

The Doctor blinked in confusion. The name Glitz wasn't quite clicking in his mind, and, for the moment, he didn't care; what would Salamander have desired that would have sent him turning to the intergalactic black market?

Slowly, the Gallifreyan eased the parcel open, staring at the electronic device that was mounted on a wrist strap.

"That can't be…" he murmured. Quickly, he pulled out his 500-year diary and leafed through it, and suddenly drew in a sharp breath. "…It is! It's a genuine vortex manipulator! So, that's Salamander's plan, then—make a quick exit in case the people here finally catch on to the idea that he and his weather machine are the ones behind the drought. …Not that it would work with the Vortex in the state that it's in, of course… Still, I can't let him have this in his possession!"

Without another word, he pocketed the vortex manipulator, as well, and was heading back for the office door to leave—but froze as he heard the secretary blurt out an exclamation of surprise.

"Mr. Salamander!?"

"Oh, crumbs…" the Doctor muttered.

He looked back behind him—at the large, glass windows. To his relief, there appeared to be some sort of fire escape trailing down from the window-ledge—yet another escape path that the paranoid Salamander had made for himself.

By the time Salamander had pieced together what had happened and had charged into his office, the Doctor had vanished into the darkness of the night. Salamander cursed as he glared at the broken window, but his anger soon turned to pure, unadulterated fear as his gaze fell upon the torn packaging from the parcel that had contained his vortex manipulator. Glitz's note had been cast aside, as well, in the course of the Doctor's hasty exit.

Salamander inhaled and exhaled as he visibly shook in fear. His last hope, his sure protection against the endless horrors of the Vortex, had been taken from him.

"Mr. Salamander?" the secretary asked, in a small voice. "Is there something I can do, Sir—?"

Salamander whirled around, grabbing a sheet of paper from his desk and scribbling a quick note on it. He handed it to his secretary.

"Have that messaged aired on every radio, and every television and computer screen every five minutes—but _not_ on the loudspeakers!" he ordered. "I will end this now—strike this impostor at his weakest point!"

The secretary could only watch, baffled, as Salamander stormed out of the office just as he had entered.

* * *

It was a nervous wait for Zoe, as she fretted and worried over whether the Doctor would return with the water in time. Jamie did seem to be sleepy—and knowing that the Doctor had wanted him to stay awake, she was desperately trying to keep him interested by talking about various things—but she seemed to keep returning to the Doctor.

"Jamie, please…" she said. "You need to stay awake—for him. He practically begged you to stay awake. Do you remember what I told you—about how he would feel if something irreversible happened to you? You didn't see the look on his face when you wouldn't drink the first pouch of electrolyte liquid; he'd looked as though his entire world had just come crashing down upon him."

She blinked, going over her choice of words.

Perhaps, it had, she thought. Even when she had first met them on the Wheel, it had been evident to her how deeply they had cared for each other.

She was brought back to the present by Jamie's sudden gasp.

"Jamie?"

He wasn't looking at her; he was staring straight up at the ceiling. Zoe glanced up, as well, but saw nothing.

"Jamie, what is it? I don't see…" She trailed off as she noticed Jamie's eyes glowing—the sign of another vision. "Oh, Jamie, no! Jamie, you need to stay in reality! Jamie!"

"Water…" he gasped.

"The Doctor's out looking for water right now; you have to hold on! Don't think about the visions! Just close your eyes and focus on my voice—"

"There's so much water…"

"…What…?" Zoe asked, confused and concerned.

"Too much water… Water… all around me…" The piper's arms flailed, slowly and weakly, as his glowing eyes stared upwards in horror. "Cannae breathe… I'm drowning… I cannae breathe!"

"Jamie!" Zoe cried, but then was aware of a second voice calling the piper's name, as well.

"Jamie!" the Doctor exclaimed, as he ran back inside the little kitchen.

He quickly knelt beside the piper, cradling him in one arm while taking a water bottle with his free hand and opening the top of it with his teeth. He now poured some of the water on Jamie's face, which stopped his eyes' glowing.

He gasped, looking up at the Doctor.

"Doc…!"

"Don't try to talk, Jamie," he said, holding the bottle up to Jamie's lips. "Just drink. Zoe, what did he see?"

"I'm not entirely sure," she said, as Jamie began to drink. "He mentioned something about a lot of water and drowning…"

Jamie nearly spat out the mouthful of water he was drinking.

"Aye!" he gasped. "There was water e'erywhere—swirling all around! So much of it! I couldnae breathe!"

"Was it falling from the Vortex?" the Doctor asked.

"I don' know…" Jamie said. "All I could see was a great wall of water just… sweeping past."

The Doctor's face fell.

"Doctor?" Zoe asked, seeing the look on his face. "What do you think he saw? The collapse?"

"I'm not sure…" the Doctor said, tightening his grip around Jamie's shoulders. "But I do know that we don't have time to wait. As soon as Jamie finishes this bottle, we need to start moving on to that weather machine out in the mountains."

"I don' think I can walk…" Jamie said.

"We'll help you," the Doctor promised. "There are some hovercrafts right outside."

But the companions both noticed the look of unease on the Doctor's face.

"Doctor?" Jamie asked. "Is e'erything going to be alright—after what I saw?"

The Doctor gave him a long look and managed a wan smile.

"Let's hope so, Jamie."


	15. Bringing Down Someone Who's Found

It was a tense escape for the TARDIS crew; procuring the hovercrafts was a faster means of travel, but it was also far more conspicuous. Everywhere, Jamie and Zoe's images were posted on walls and light-posts, but the trio, by cutting through alleys and causing damage to more than once back fence, managed to avoid any pursuers.

They all breathed a sigh of relief as they made it out of the city limits, but it was a long, long way back to the mountains. The Doctor saw to it that Jamie kept drinking the water; the glow in his eyes had reduced somewhat—no longer having anymore visions, but not out of danger yet.

At last, they reached the weather machine; it was still as it was before, at the base of the crystals—with the empty canal leading away from the crystals. The Doctor took a look at the machine.

"Aha, I see what's happened!" the Doctor said. "The rift in the Vortex that caused Salamander to fall through and end up here was minor. It would have repaired itself, but Salamander used this machine to harness to control the weather for his own ends; it requires a tremendous amount of energy—and it's drawing the energy from the Vortex, storing it right here, in the crystals!"

"And, therefore, displacing the water into the Vortex," Zoe finished. "Are you able to fix it, then?"

"I believe so!" the Doctor exclaimed, using his sonic screwdriver to open a panel in the machine. "It's just a matter of reversing the polarity! …I say, that's a clever phrase; I must remember that…"

"Is there anything we can do?" Jamie asked.

"Yes, actually, there is!" the Doctor said, fishing two small pieces of metal out of his pocket. "We need a large electric charge to make the polarity reversal work, and these will conduct the lightning strikes to give us that charge. Zoe, I need you to clip this one to the top of the aerial here on the machine. And, Jamie, I need you to attach this piece of metal to one of the crystals."

"Does it matter where I put it?"

"The ideal place would be at the base of that crystal that the canal leaves from—that's the tallest one, and the one most likely to be struck by lightning."

"Aye," the Scot said, stumbling down into the canal. His strength wasn't back to normal, but he could accomplish this task, he knew.

"Do you need any help?" the Doctor called, concerned.

"No; I can manage," Jamie called back. He would be happy when this was over—he would no longer have to worry about his eyes or staying hydrated. And the others wouldn't have to fuss and worry over him.

Zoe soon had her piece clipped to the antenna, and looked to the Doctor as he let out an exclamation of triumph.

"Oh, that's done it!" he said. "Once Jamie attaches the other piece of metal to the crystal, all we need to do is wait for lightning to strike!"

"Your plan, Doctor, has but one fatal flaw!" a familiar voice snarled at them.

Jamie's eyes widened as Salamander emerged from behind the largest crystal; Zoe and the Doctor looked sharply in that direction as Jamie quickly scrambled away, trying to climb back out of the canal.

"Jamie, quickly, take my hand—" the Doctor began, holding out a hand to him, but stopping dead as he and Zoe were suddenly seized from behind. "Oh, of all the…!" He trailed off as he realized that it wasn't mercenaries who were holding him and Zoe, but ordinary citizens.

The piper soon found himself hauled out of the canal by a few more citizens. Soon, they were surrounded by a crowd, and it soon became clear why they had been able to arrive here without too much trouble; Salamander had been rallying the populace against them, knowing that they would be here eventually—and Salamander was here with plenty of witnesses to see them meddling with the weather machine, thus solidifying them as the enemy.

"You see?" Salamander said. "All three of them, caught in the act of sabotage! And it is all the fault of that one!" He glared accusingly at Jamie. "The little demon found this impostor and tried to use him to deceive you while he controlled the weather with his eyes—and disable my machine so that I could not stop him!"

"No!" Jamie said, looking pleadingly to his captors. "No; we were trying to help! It was Salamander who ruined the weather! I absorbed the Vortex energy by accident! The Doctor was just trying to help me—help the space-time continuum before it collapses!"

"See!?" Salamander barked. "He admits that all of space and time is in peril! And what does my impostor do? Put all of us at risk to try to help this demon-boy!"

The growing crowd was mumbling angrily, growing more and more hostile with every word that Salamander spoke.

"Throw him down to me!" Salamander ordered. "I will end this creature's reign of terror over us!"

"No!" the Doctor pleaded. "Jamie is innocent—if you just give me five minutes, I can prove it—and make it rain again! We're rapidly approaching the critical point; if I don't act now, we're all lost!"

"Who will you believe!?" Salamander asked the crowd. "That impostor, or myself? I have done everything in my power to stop this drought—only to be thwarted by these three at every turn!"

"That isn't true!" the Doctor said. "Salamander has caused the drought; I'm trying to reverse it before it's too late! You have to believe me!"

Salamander glanced at the Doctor with a smug expression on his face.

"So sorry, Doctor. They will not believe your lies."

"But it's true! Every single word! If you just give us a chance, we can prove it!" Zoe exclaimed. "We…" She trailed off as the people holding Jamie now threw him back into the canal; the piper landed at Salamander's feet, right beside the base of the crystal. "No! You can't do that to him!"

Salamander now planted his foot on Jamie's neck. The piper let out a strangled gasp as the pressure on his windpipe increased. Already weak and light-headed, he was just barely aware of the Doctor's horrified cry.

"JAMIE!"

"First things first, Doctor," Salamander said. "The wristband you stole from me? I demand its return immediately."

"It won't even work while—"

Salamander pressed his foot down harder, and the agonized gasp for breath from the piper was enough for the Time Lord to pull the vortex manipulator from his pocket and throw it down to Salamander, who caught it with one hand.

"You have it back," the Doctor said. "Let Jamie go—let us fix this!"

"I think we should leave that decision to the people, _si_?" Salamander asked. He turned around, glancing over the faces looking at him. "What do you all say, huh? Do we let them get away with this nefarious plot!?"

The angry crowd responded in the negative, and the Doctor's face fell.

"And what of the demon-boy who caused this entire thing!?" Salamander asked them. "What do we do with him!?"

Zoe's blood ran cold in her veins as each and every person around them began calling for Jamie's death; whether it was because they blindly believed Salamander, or whether they were that desperate to do anything to save their own skins, she didn't know, but not a single voice of dissent was among them.

"The people of Neo Serenity have spoken!" Salamander said, glaring at the Doctor in triumph. "Does the 'needle' have anything to say?"

The Doctor's eyes flashed as Jamie continued to struggle for breath, his arms and legs flailing helplessly.

"Neo Serenity!" he spat. "The name is an utter joke! Here you all are, brainwashed into condoning the murder of an innocent young man to save your own skins—when it will absolutely do no good for the situation!"

"It couldn't hurt," Salamander said, offhandedly.

"Oh, that's where you are wrong," the Doctor said. "Because this needle will burst more than one bubble if Jamie dies."

"Please!" Zoe said, tears springing to her eyes. "Just give us five minutes to prove that Jamie is innocent!"

"No!" Salamander barked. "The people have spoken, therefore I will do as they wish of me—" He was cut off by his own agonized yell.

It was then that the Doctor realized that Jamie's flailing was not without purpose; he had been trying to get his leg near his hand to allow him to pull his knife out of his sock. He had succeeded, and had stabbed Salamander in the shin.

Salamander removed his foot from the piper's throat. Jamie gasped for air, and then hurled his knife at the base of the crystal, a smile crossing his face as the metal blade stuck into the crystal.

"Oh, well done, Jamie!" the Doctor exclaimed, as he and Zoe grinned, too.

The smiles were quickly wiped from their faces, however, as Salamander grabbed for Jamie, furious.

" _Pequeño diablo_!" he snarled.

He struck the piper with a crushing blow to the shoulder; Jamie collapsed, but tried to scramble away, knowing that Salamander would try to crush his windpipe again. The Doctor and Zoe tried to come to his aid, but they were, once again, held back by the crowd—some of whom were now descending into the canal with the intention of holding Jamie down while Salamander finished him off.

They were feet from Jamie when a bolt of lightning struck the tall crystal, setting it aglow. Sparks flew from Jamie's knife, a smaller bolt striking the bit of metal that Zoe had attached to the machine's antenna.

The crystals grew even more brightly, and, suddenly, the energy stored within them shot towards the swirling Vortex in the sky.

"Jamie, get away!" the Doctor yelled. "Now!"

The members of the crowd in the canal didn't stop him; they were quickly fleeing, as well. Salamander stared in horror as things all around him—small objects, at first, but then steadily larger ones—began to be pulled up into the Vortex, as well. He, too, retreated, and was near his machine when he began to be lifted off of his feet.

With a panicked cry, he seized the open panel on the machine, which was still being held in place by one screw.

The Doctor now pulled free of his captors as they started retreating, as well; Zoe was soon free, and they both stared as Salamander held onto the panel for dear life. The Gallifreyan took a few steps towards him, staying far enough behind to avoid getting caught in the suction of the Vortex.

"Doctor!?" Salamander asked. "What are you doing!?"

"Well…" the Doctor said, twirling his sonic screwdriver in his fingers. "I was just remembering something you told me earlier. What was that you said about vendettas?" He looked innocently at Salamander as the look of sheer horror grew on his face. "Oh, yes—they are always personal."

"NO—!"

The Doctor aimed the sonic at the solitary screw.

"Pop!" he said, simply, as he activated it.

Salamander's ensuing scream of fright filled the air, fading as he vanished, panel and all, into the Vortex. The crowd barely noticed—for, at that moment, rain began to fall.

"You did it!" Zoe exclaimed, jubilant. "Doctor, you did it!"

"Well, I had quite a bit of help!" he said. "Jamie! Are you alright?"

The piper grinned as he got to his feet.

"Aye!" he said, still a little wobbly. "And Salamander is back where he belongs; hopefully, this time, he'll stay there…" He trailed off, suddenly glancing back up as he heard a frightening noise—and looked up to see an equally frightening sight.

All of the water that had been absorbed by the Vortex as now being expelled from it as the energy stream returned—and all of the canal water was pouring back down all at once.

And the piper's own words from earlier now returned to his consciousness—

" _There was water e'erywhere—swirling all around! So much of it! I couldnae breathe!"_

It was a futile effort, he knew, but, out of desperation, he ran for the side of the canal, trying to climb out. The Doctor, horrified once more, reached a hand out to him; they were just barely touching when the piper was swept away.


	16. While Reddened Eyes Hope

Zoe was still too much in shock to fully get a grip on what the Doctor was doing as she stared, helplessly, at the rushing water. It was only after she heard the second splash, as a black-clad blur dove into the water, that she found her voice.

"Doctor!" she cried. "Jamie!"

She had suspected for a while now, based on his poikilothermy and his eating habits, that the Doctor's people were reptilian—specifically, crocodilians. Now, she was hoping that she was right—and that the rushing water wouldn't be too much for him. Jamie didn't stand a chance on his own; even under normal circumstances, he couldn't swim. Zoe was no better, and even if she was, this canal would be too much.

There was little she could do other than follow the crowd as they ran alongside the canal; they weren't paying any attention to her, but were determined to find out what had happened to the impostor and the boy with the glowing eyes. And all Zoe wanted was to be reassured that her friends were alright.

She had never believed in miracles, and had never asked for one—until this very moment.

* * *

Jamie, in the meantime, had been flailing in vain as the rushing water carried him further down the canal. Once, he broke the surface and managed to get a quick breath, but now, everything was going hazy as he struggled to hold his breath.

His lungs were screaming in protest; he had to breathe—had to…!

His eyes snapped open as he felt a familiar arm around him. Though he couldn't speak, the look in his eyes was one of surprise—and relief.

The Doctor was, as Zoe hoped, a strong swimmer. He helped the piper above water with one arm while grabbing for the canal wall with the other. Jamie coughed and spat out a mouthful of water before greedily gulping down the fresh air.

Along the expanse of the canal walls were small, metal ladders, built for easy access during times of drought for any necessary repairs to be made. Still keeping an arm around Jamie, the Doctor grabbed one of the metal rungs, gritting his teeth as the water continued to rush past them. Jamie also held on to the rungs, trying to make things slightly less strenuous for the Doctor. The current was starting to lessen now that enough water was spreading throughout the canal, but it was by no means a simple task.

That was when the members of the crowd stopped running. They didn't move—didn't say a word. They all gathered along the edge of the canal, just staring down at the Doctor and Jamie.

Zoe reached them, now, looking ready to cry with relief. But this sense of elation quickly dissipated as she saw the crowd, and how they stared at them with unreadable expressions on their faces.

Slowly, she crept closer to the edge, waiting for someone to react. Nothing happened, and she then proceeded to hold a hand out to them. The Doctor now lifted Jamie as much as he could with one arm, trying to get him out of the water enough so that the current wouldn't be too much for Zoe and pull her in, as well.

Jamie took her hand, and after a few tense moments, she succeeded in pulling him onto dry land. Now only contending with his own weight, the Doctor was able to use one more burst of strength to pull himself up the ladder and out of the canal.

Immediately, he clung to the both of his companions as they all knelt beside each other; he glared up at the crowd, silently daring them to make a move.

"Salamander deceived you all," he said. "It was he who caused the drought with that infernal machine of his; so desperate was he to stay in control, he distracted you all with a scapegoat! I warned him what would happen if he tried to harm Jamie—and you saw his fate yourselves!" His eyes blazed as he looked upon the crowd. "So, that leaves us with just one question—who will be the next bubble to touch the needle?"

He stared at the crowd, unblinkingly. There appeared to be a silent standoff—one Gallifreyan against a crowd of humans. In the end, it appeared that Salamander's fate was enough to deter them from confronting the Doctor without him; a few people cast a glance at the still-swirling Vortex in the sky as the last of the water poured from it, and then began to leave, heading back towards the city.

Others followed suit, and then more; soon, crowd mentality struck again, and the Doctor and his companions were soon left alone, prompting the three of them to breathe a sigh of relief once more.

"I thought they would attack for a moment," Zoe said, trembling.

"That, my dear Zoe, is what they mean by tyranny of the mob," the Doctor said, a calm expression returning to his face. "Salamander would not have been able to get as far as he did had he not used that to his advantage. I was concerned over whether or not they would attack, as well. But it seems the idea of spending time in the Vortex was unpleasant enough for them to consider otherwise. Besides, I am sure that they have plans to hoard as much water as they can now that the drought is over." He looked down at the piper. "Jamie, are you alright?"

"Aye," the piper said. "But, for a moment, I di'n think I would be. I don' know how ye managed swimming through that mess."

"Yes, well…" the Doctor said. "Sometimes, not being human has its distinct advantages."

"Ye were more human than they were."

The Doctor looked at him in surprise.

"I think I understand what he means," Zoe said, surprised that she did. "Not human in the physical sense, but in the emotional sense?"

"I believe that is exactly what he meant," the Doctor said.

"Aye. They were ready to kill me, just because they thought it would end their drought. And ye wouldnae let them, e'en though they would've killed ye, too."

"Well, I am rather fond of you, Jamie," the Time Lord said, with a smile. "And you, too, Zoe. By the way, your theory on saturating Jamie's cells with water seems to have been spot-on after all. Look!"

"Look at what?" Jamie asked, confused, and was still baffled as Zoe grinned at him.

"Your eyes, Jamie! They aren't glowing anymore!"

The Doctor pulled a mirror from his pocket, grinning, too, as the young Scot glanced at his normal eyes.

"Yes, it seems that we forgot that saturating your cells with water meant the internal cells, as well…." the Doctor said. "You took in enough water to purge your cells of the Vortex energy."

"Oh, aye…" he said, looking up in time to see the Vortex closing, all energy restored. "That's it, then—it's over?"

"Well… not quite."

The two humans looked to the Doctor in confusion.

"Salamander may be back in the Vortex, but I imagine it won't last," he informed them. "That wristband that he made me give him… that was a time-travel device called a Vortex manipulator. I've only ever heard of them, but he seems to have acquired one on the black market. Assuming he can keep his sanity again, it's only a matter of time until he learns how to activate it."

"…That means that he can go anywhere in space and time as he pleases!" Zoe said, her eyes going wide.

"If he learns how to fully control it, yes," the Doctor sighed. "And I'm sure he'll find a whole new civilization to manipulate to his own ends. I don't suppose he'll ever learn. And I also doubt that we've seen the last of him."

"Oh…" Jamie said, looking troubled.

"Don't worry yourselves about that right now; let's enjoy the peace while it lasts, shall we?"

Jamie and Zoe exchanged glances and looked back at the Doctor, nodding in agreement. They'd made it through this misadventure—and another one was sure to come their way soon enough.

**Epilogue: The Night has Gone**

Once the surging waters in the canal had calmed down sufficiently enough, the Doctor retrieved Jamie's knife from the crystal, knowing how much it meant to the Scot. Jamie was, indeed, grateful to have it back, but he was more grateful that the three of them had survived the ordeal.

Soon, the three were in front of the fireplace in the Doctor's study, now in dry clothes and sipping tea as the TARDIS traveled once more into the unknown.

"Doctor…" Zoe said, after some time. "There's something that I'm not so certain about. It's about emotions."

"Yes?"

"You and Jamie keep saying that emotions are a good thing, don't you?"

"Yes, we do."

"…But I don't understand how being upset and worried is a good thing. It's like I told you—I yelled at Jamie earlier, and I don't know why."

"Well, ye were mad at me," Jamie said.

"And then, at times, I was… scared and sad," Zoe went on. "Like when we thought we were going to lose Jamie to the dehydration… or when we were trapped in the fire. I don't like these emotions; how can they possibly be _good_?"

The Doctor just smiled.

"Because emotions are what make you human," he said. "And they are all important—the bad, and the good. Picking and choosing your emotions just wouldn't do, you see. You need to experience them all. Emotions guide us; they help us choose which paths to take—especially during times we have to make difficult decisions."

"Like when ye decided to get water for me instead of stopping the Vortex problem right away?" Jamie asked. "…I ne'er did thank ye for that."

"Jamie, trust me when I say that once I made my decision, I never regretted it," the Doctor assured him, ruffling the piper's hair.

Jamie grinned.

"I'd have done the same for ye," he promised.

"Perhaps, someday, you will," the Doctor said, and he turned back to Zoe. "But do you see now, Zoe? We are able to appreciate each other's company now more than before we arrived on Neo Serenity."

"I… think I understand…" she said. "The bad emotions are important because you appreciate the good ones more?"

"Quite right."

"…I still don't like the bad ones, though."

"Aye, no one does," Jamie said. "I don' like it when I remember all the things I've lost. But I am grateful for what I have. Sometimes, I worry that I'll lose it, though."

"That's only natural, too," the Doctor said. He knew the feeling all too well, having lost so much already. "And if there is anything out there that finally succeeds in driving us apart… I promise to the both of you—I will find a way back to you. I don't know how long it will take… but I will find a way."

They believed him; there was no question as to how much they meant to the Doctor—or how much he meant to them.

In the end, they knew that would be their biggest strength, for it had gotten them through so many scrapes—and would get them through so many more.

**The End**


End file.
